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Updated: Jul 9, 2026

Synthesis of Esters Via a Greener Steglich Esterification in Acetonitrile
Published on: October 30, 2018
Virtually complete E-selective alpha,beta-unsaturated ester synthesis by Hg(OTf)2-catalyzed hydration of
Mugio Nishizawa1, Hiroko Hirakawa, Yuki Nakagawa
1Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tokushima Bunri University, Yamashiro-cho, Tokushima 770-8514, Japan. mugi@ph.bunri-u.ac.jp
Abstract:
The reaction of alkyl-substituted sec-ethoxyalkynyl acetates with water catalyzed by Hg(OTf)2 afforded alpha,beta-unsaturated esters in excellent yield with high catalytic turnover up to 1000 times under very mild reaction conditions with virtually complete E-selectivity, superior even to that of the HWE reaction.
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