Method for the production of 1,3-dioxolane-2-ones and carboxylic acid esters by means of transacylation in basic reaction conditions

A process for preparing 1,3-dioxolan-2-one of formula 3

• wherein
• R1 and R2 each independently of one another represent hydrogen or an aryl or heteroaryl group, while the aryl or heteroaryl group may optionally be mono- or polysubstituted in each case;
• R4 and R5 are each independently of one another selected from among hydrogen, C1-C6-alkyl, or R4 and R5 together form a saturated or mono- or polyunsaturated carbocyclic or heterocyclic ring which may contain one or more heteroatoms, selected from S, N or O, each of which may optionally be mono- or polysubstituted independently of one another, while R4 and R5 cannot both simultaneously be hydrogen;
• comprising reacting in one step a 2-hydroxycarboxylic acid ester of formula 1
• wherein
• R1 and R2 are as hereinbefore defined and
• R3 denotes methyl, ethyl, propyl, isopropyl, isopropenyl, butyl, N-succinimide, N-phthalimide, phenyl, nitrophenyl, fluorophenyl, pentafluorophenyl, vinyl, 2-allyl,
• in a suitable solvent with the addition of a suitable tert-alkoxide basic catalyst, in the presence of zeolite, with a compound of formula 2
• wherein R4 and R5 are as hereinbefore defined.