The present invention relates to the preparation of aminoalkyl p-hydroxyphenyl ketones. Certain of these ketones are well known as important intermediates in the production of compounds having pharmaceutical activity, for example octopamine or synephrine.
The known Houben-Hoesch reaction is a variation of the Friedel-Crafts reaction and involves the condensation of a phenolic substrate with a nitrile in the presence of a Lewis acid catalyst to give a hydroxy-aryl ketone.
It is an object of the invention to provide a new or improved process for the manufacture of aminoalkyl p-hydroxyphenyl ketones.
According to the invention, there is provided a process for the preparation of an aminoalkyl p-hydroxyphenyl ketone comprising reacting phenol with a nitrile, in the presence of a Lewis acid catalyst, to cause condensation thereof, the process being characterised in that the reaction is carried out in a medium comprising a nitroalkane solvent for the reactants.
A preferred but non-limiting feature of the invention is the productiqn of 2'amino-4-hydroxyacetophenones.
The present invention is based on the surprising discovery that nitroalkanes are unexpectedly much better solvents for this reaction, being less toxic, giving a better yield and also ensuring a homogeneous reaction medium. The nitroalkanes may also be diluted with a halogenated hydrocarbon solvent, which acts as an inert diluent, thus reducing the amount of nitroalkane used, and making the reaction less hazardous.
本发明涉及
氨基烷基对羟基苯基酮的制备。众所周知,其中某些
酮类是生产具有药用活性的化合物(如
辛胺或合
肾上腺素)的重要中间体。
已知的 Houben-Hoesch 反应是 Friedel-Crafts 反应的一种变体,包括在
路易斯酸催化剂存在下,
酚类底物与腈缩合生成羟基芳基酮。
本发明的目的是提供一种制造
氨基烷基对羟基苯基酮的新工艺或改进工艺。
根据本发明,提供了一种制备
氨基烷基对羟基苯基酮的工艺,该工艺包括在
路易斯酸催化剂存在下,使
苯酚与腈反应以引起其缩合,该工艺的特征在于反应是在包括反应物的硝基
烷烃溶剂的介质中进行的。
本发明的一个优选但非限制性特征是 2'
氨基-
4-羟基
苯乙酮的产物。
本发明基于一个惊人的发现,即硝基
烷烃是意想不到的更好的溶剂,毒性更低,产率更高,还能确保反应介质的均匀性。硝基
烷烃还可以用卤代烃溶剂稀释,卤代烃溶剂可以作为惰性稀释剂,从而减少硝基
烷烃的用量,降低反应的危险性。