4-formyl-2,6-dimethoxyphenyl 2-(4-methoxyphenyl)acetate

Syringaldehyde (0.91 g, 5.0 mmol) was dissolved in acetonitrile (35 mL) with catalyst DMAP (0.06 g, 0.5 mmol) and EDC.HCl (1.25 g, 6.5 mmol). 4-methoxyphenylacetic acid (0.92 g, 5.5 mmol) was then added to the solution and heated to reflux. Upon completion of the reaction, hexane (20 mL) was added to the mixture, and the mixture was then extracted using HCl (20 mL, 1 M), sodium bicarbonate (20 mL, 10 wt%), water (20 mL), saturated sodium chloride (20 mL), and dried with MgSO4. The solvent was then removed in vacuo and gave the product of white, translucent crystals (0.22 g, 0.67 mmol, 13 % yield).