A Highly Efficient Synthetic Method for the Preparation of 3,4-Dimethylbenzaldehyde from o-Xylene in Aqueous Media

In this study, 3,4-dimethylbenzaldehyde was obtained in 82.3% total yield by oxidation of 3,4-dimethylbenzyl chloride with NaNO3/AcOH catalyzed by PEG-600 in aqueous media. The starting material 3,4-dimethylbenzyl chloride was prepared by chloromethylation of o-xylene in CTAB micellar catalytic system. Compared with other synthetic methods, this method not only enhanced the yield, but also afforded an efficient work-up procedure. The structures of the products were confirmed by Elemental analysis, 1H NMR and 13C NMR or compared with authentic samples