a) 10 g (60 mmol) of 3-nitrophenylacetic acid was dissolved in 120 ml of ethanol and 20 ml of ethyl acetate solution saturated with hydrogen chloride was added. The reaction mixture was heated to reflux for 4 hours before being cooled and allowed to stand at room temperature for 18 hours. Subsequently, the solvent was removed by evaporation and the residue was dispersed in 120 ml of ether and 100 ml of aqueous saturated sodium bicarbonate solution for partitioning. The organic phase was separated, dried over magnesium sulfate, filtered and the solvent evaporated to give 10.3 g (82% yield) of ethyl 3-nitrophenylacetate, the product being a light yellow oil. [NMR hydrogen spectrum (250 MHz, CDCl3) δ1.25 (t, 3H), δ3.68 (s, 2H), δ4.6 (q, 2H), δ6.5-δ6.7 (m, 3H), δ7.09 (dd, 1H)].
