Aluminum chloride catalyzed isomerization of sym- octahydrophenanthrene to sym-octahydroanthracene with acyl peroxide

摘要

A method is disclosed for promoting isomerization of sym- octahydrophenanthrene (s-OHP) to sym-octahydroanthracene (s-OHA) in the presence of a catalyst provided by aluminum chloride or aluminum bromide, or a mixture of these two compounds. The rate of isomerization is increased by having the reaction run in the presence of an acyl peroxide such as benzoyl peroxide or lauroyl peroxide.