1-(2-Hydroxy-5-methylphenyl)-3-phenyl-1,3-propanedione

4010-19-9

29976-82-7

2-Benzoyloxy-5-methylacetophenone (I) (5 g, 19.6 mmol) was reacted with 15 g of powdered hot KOH in 25 ml of pyridine and heated at 100 °C for 30 min. After completion of the reaction, the reaction mixture was slowly poured into pre-cooled and acidified (6N HCl) ice water. Subsequently, the precipitated yellow precipitate was collected by filtration. The resulting solid residue was dried under vacuum. The crude product 1-(2-hydroxy-5-methylphenyl)-3-phenylpropane-1,3-dione (II) was purified by recrystallization from petroleum ether, resulting in yellow bright plate-like crystals. Yield: 75%; mass of isolated product: 3.73 g; melting point: 95 °C (literature value: 94 °C [34]).