Catalysis

Engineering

Yield (engineering)

Geotechnical engineering

Metallurgy

Materials science

Cleavage (geology)

Alkylation

Alkyl

Lewis acids and bases

Medicinal chemistry

Organic chemistry

Fracture (geology)

Chemistry

Carboxylic acid

Aryl

Applied Organometallic Chemistry

A reliable and practical procedure for FeCl 3 ‐promoted ester cleavage has been developed. Lewis acids including TiCl 4 , ZnO and FeCl 3 etc. were investigated as promoters for O ‐alkyl cleavage of carboxylic acid ester. Under optimal reaction conditions, FeCl 3 (1.5 equiv.) was found to possess the highest activity and efficiently enhanced dealkylation of aryl esters, alkyl esters and aromatic heterocyclic esters to give their corresponding carboxylic acids in 54–98% yield, the method provides a complementary access to dealkylation of ester under neutral condition. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley &amp; Sons, Ltd.

An efficient FeCl3-promoted O-alkyl cleavage of esters to carboxylic acids