Ethanol → Ethyl 5-methylpyrazine-2-carboxylate

Participants

Reaction Conditions

Reaction Steps

The reaction is carried out, under nitrogen, in a 1 L×4 neck flask equipped with a mechanical stirrer, water condenser (with gas inlet), and a thermocouple. The reactor is charged with 5-methylpyrazinecarboxylic acid (100 g), ethanol (300 g) and sulfuric acid (2 g). The contents are refluxed for eight hours at 78° C. The reaction mixture is cooled to ambient temperature and sodium bicarbonate (4 g) is added. About 75% of the solvent is removed under reduced pressure and the resulting suspension is allowed to stand overnight. The solids are filtered and washed with cold methanol (2×80 g). Drying under oven (25 inches of Hg) yielded 101.25 g (84%) of 5-methyl-2-pyrazinecarboxylic acid, ethyl ester.

Provenance & Evidence