3β-Acet-oxy-12α-chloro-d-friedooleanan-28,14β-olide

The title compound, C(32)H(49)ClO(4), was obtained along with nitrile and lactam products in the POCl(3)-catalysed Beckmann rearrangement from 3β-acet-oxy-12-hydroxyiminoolean-28-olic acid methyl ester. The mechanism of the transformation leading to the title compound remains unclear and requires further investigation. Rings A, B and E are in chair conformations, ring C has a twisted-boat conformation, ring D a conformation halfway between boat and twisted-boat and rings D and E are cis-fused. In the crystal, mol-ecules are connected by weak inter-molecular C-H⋯O hydrogen bonds into layers extending parallel to the bc plane.