2-Naphthalenecarboxaldehyde → 2-(2-Methoxyvinyl) naphthalene

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Reaction Steps

To the solution produced by reacting sodium (0.92 g) in dry ethanol (60 ml) was added methoxymethyltriphenylphosphonium chloride (15.2 g). After stirring at room temperature for 0.5 hours, 2-naphthaldehyde (5.5 g) was added and the mixture heated at reflux for 5 hours. The mixture was evaporated to dryness and extracted with boiling ether, cooled to precipitate triphenylphosphine oxide, filtered and evaporated. The residue in dichloromethane (5 ml) was passed through a column of alumina and eluted with hexane to give 2-(2-methoxyvinyl) naphthalene (3.6 g), nD20 1.6505, which was hydrolysed in dioxan (50 ml) containing 2N sulphuric acid (5 ml) at 70° for 5 hours. After adding water, the mixture was extracted with ether, and the extract washed, (saturated sodium chloride), dried, (sodium sulphate) and evaporated to give 2-naphthylacetaldehyde (3.25 g) nD20 1.6232.

Provenance & Evidence