Recent Advances in the Synthesis of Carboxylic Acid Esters

Abstract

In this chapter, recent advances in the synthesis of carboxylic acid esters are summarized based on the utilization of carboxylic acids as electrophiles or nucleophiles in reactions. Condensation reagents or catalysts connect the carboxylic acids with the alcohols to afford the corresponding esters, together with the formation of 1 equiv. of H2O, in which the carboxylic acids can be regarded as the electrophile. In contrast, the carboxylate ion intermediates derived from the carboxylic acids react with alkyl halides, carbocations, or their equivalents to produce the esters, in which the carboxylate ions from the carboxylic acids can be regarded as the nucleophile. This chapter mainly introduces the recent progress in this field of the formation of esters, based on the classification of the role of carboxylic acids in reactions.