Acetic Anhydride → 4-Ethenylphenyl acetate

Participants

Reaction Steps

Pittet et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 4,316,995 describe a method for preparing p-vinylphenol. In that method, p-hydroxybenzaldehyde is first reacted with malonic acid using ethylenediamine as catalyst to give pHCA, which is decarboxylated in situ at a temperature of 115 to 120° C. to form impure p-vinylphenol. The p-vinylphenol is isolated from the reaction mixture and reacted with acetic anhydride in the presence of a base, such as sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide, to form 4-acetoxystyrene, which is separated from the reaction mixture and hydrolyzed in the presence of a strong base to give purified p-vinylphenol. The yield of 4-vinylphenol was about 31%.

Provenance & Evidence