Diethyl phenylmalonate

Chemical synthesis

Unlike other malonic esters that are derived via malonic ester synthesis, diethyl phenylmalonate is typically indirectly derived via a Claisen condensation with diethyl oxalate and ethyl phenylacetate followed by decarbonylation. This indirect method is often used because aryl halides are relatively weaker nucleophiles than aliphatic halocarbons and thus poorly alkylate diethyl malonate. Methods using Caesium carbonate and copper(I) iodide have been developed to overcome this difficulty however.