p-Bromophenacyl bromide (CAS NO.: ), which is also known as 4-bromophenacyl bromide, could be produced through the following synthetic routes.

In a 500-cc. flask are placed 50 g. (0.25 mole) of p-bromoacetophenone (p. 109) and 100 cc. of glacial acetic acid. To the resulting solution is very slowly added 40 g. (12.5 cc., 0.25 mole) of bromine, keeping the temperature below 20°. The mixture is vigorously shaken by hand during the addition. p-Bromophenacyl bromide begins to separate as needles when about one-half of the bromine has been added. The addition requires about thirty minutes.

When all the bromine has been added, the flask is cooled in ice-water and the product filtered with suction. The crude crystals are washed with 50 per cent ethyl alcohol until colorless (about 100 cc. is required). The material so obtained, when air-dried, melts at 106–108° and weighs 55–60 g. It is recrystallized from 400 cc. of 95 per cent ethyl alcohol, from which it separates as colorless needles melting at 108–109°. The yield is 48–50 g. (69–72 per cent of the theoretical amount).