General procedure for the synthesis of 3-fluoro-2-methoxy-benzenemethanol from 3-fluoro-2-methoxybenzaldehyde: To a solution of 3-fluoro-2-methoxybenzaldehyde (3.41 g, 22.1 mmol) in methanol (20 mL) was slowly added sodium borohydride (1.00 g, 26.6 mmol) under nitrogen protection. The reaction mixture was stirred overnight at room temperature. After completion of the reaction, the reaction mixture was diluted with ether, washed twice sequentially with water, the organic phase was dried with anhydrous sodium sulfate, filtered and concentrated to give 3.02 g (87% yield) of 3-fluoro-2-methoxy-benzenemethanol as a clear colorless oil. The product was characterized by 1H NMR (400 MHz, CDCl3): δ 7.09-6.92 (m, 3H), 4.65 (d, 2H), 3.97 (s, 3H), 2.14 (t, 1H, OH).
