Phenyl acetate

Phenyl acetate is the ester of phenol and acetic acid. One way that it can be produced by decarboxylation of aspirin. Another way that it can be produced is by reacting phenol with acetic anhydride.

Phenyl acetate can be separated into phenol and an acetate salt, via saponification: heating the phenyl acetate with a strong base, such as sodium hydroxide, will produce phenol and sodium acetate. The two chemicals can then be separated by heat and decantation or heat and filtration.