Process for preparing alpha-arylacrylonitriles
AssigneeEthyl Corporation
InventorVenkataraman Ramachandran
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Abstract
An alpha-arylacrylonitrile is prepared by reacting an aryl ketone having a removable hydrogen alpha to the carbonyl group with an alkali metal cyanide and aluminum chloride, preferably in the presence of a solvent and a phase transfer catalyst. In a preferred embodiment, the aryl ketone is a tetralone, and the product is a 1-cyano-3,4-dihydronaphthalene which may then be dehydrogenated to a 1-cyanonaphthalene.
Claims17
A process which comprises reacting an aryl ketone having a removable hydrogen alpha to the carbonyl group with an alkali metal cyanide and aluminum chloride so as to form an alpha-arylacrylonitrile.
A process which comprises reacting a tetralone having a removable hydrogen alpha to the carbonyl group with an alkali metal cyanide and aluminum chloride in the presence of a catalytic amount of a tetraalkylammonium halide at a temperature of about 60.degree.-120.degree. C. so as to form a 1-cyano-3,4-dihydronaphthalene.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.