HOMOLOGATION OF CARBOXYLIC METHYL ESTERS VIA REDUCTIVE CARBONYLATION CATALYZED BY A COBALT-RUTHENIUM MIXED CATALYST

Article abstract of DOI:10.1016/S0022-328X(00)98780-1

Mixtures of cobalt acetate and ruthenium acetylacetonate promote the homologation of carboxylic methyl esters to the corresponding ethyl esters by CO-H2.The reaction of methyl formate is considered separately because of its tendency to decarboxylate.The behavior of five other methyl esters is considered as a function of the length and the size of the acyl group.In each case reductive carbonylation of the methyl ester gives methanol, ethanol, the carboxylic acid, and the ethyl ester.The formation of the last product is enhanced by the mixture of Co and Ru complexes. The mechanism is thought to be essentially the same as that previously proposed for homologation of methyl acetate.