PURPOSE: To obtain an ester of an alcohol having low reactivity especially owing to steric hindrance on an industrial scale at a low cost by reacting an alcohol with an acid anhydride or a mixed acid anhydride in the presence of a fluorinated sulfonic acid salt, nitric acid salt or sulfuric acid salt.
CONSTITUTION: An ester of formula VI is produced by reacting an alcohol of formula I [R1 is a (halogenated)alkyl, an aryl, retinyl, a group of formula IX (n is 5-12; m is 0 or 1), a group of formula X (R' is an alkyl, etc.; R'' is H or an alkyl) or group of formula XI (p is 0-4)] with an acid anhydride of formula II (R2 is an alkyl, etc.; R3 is an aryl). The reaction is carried out in the presence of a fluorinated sulfonic acid salt of formula III (M is a lanthanide; R4 is F, an aryl, etc.), a nitric acid salt of formula IV or a sulfuric acid salt of formula V. As an alternative, an acid anhydride of formula VII is made to react with a carboxylic acid of formula VIII in the presence of the above compound of formula III to V and the resultant acid anhydride of formula II is reacted with the alcohol of formula I. The ester is useful as agrichemicals, food additives, cosmetic bases, perfumes, chemicals, industrial raw materials, etc.
ISHIHARA KAZUAKI
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