Ethyl benzoate, C₉H₁₀O₂, is an

ester In chemistry, an ester is a compound derived from an acid (either organic or inorganic) in which the hydrogen atom (H) of at least one acidic hydroxyl group () of that acid is replaced by an organyl group (R). These compounds contain a distin ...

formed by the condensation of benzoic acid and

ethanol Ethanol (also called ethyl alcohol, grain alcohol, drinking alcohol, or simply alcohol) is an organic compound with the chemical formula . It is an Alcohol (chemistry), alcohol, with its formula also written as , or EtOH, where Et is the ps ...

. It is a colorless liquid that is almost insoluble in water, but miscible with most organic solvents. As with many volatile esters, ethyl benzoate has a pleasant odor described as sweet, wintergreen, fruity, medicinal, cherry and grape. It is a component of some fragrances and artificial fruit flavors.

Preparation

It is a simple and commonly used method for the preparation of ethyl benzoate in the laboratory is the acidic esterification of benzoic acid with

and

sulfuric acid Sulfuric acid (American spelling and the preferred IUPAC name) or sulphuric acid (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth spelling), known in antiquity as oil of vitriol, is a mineral acid composed of the elements sulfur, oxygen, ...

as catalyst:Arthur Israel Vogel. Rev. by Brian S. Furniss: ''Vogel’s textbook of practical organic chemistry.'' 5. Auflage. Longman, Harlow 1989, , S. 1076 : Ethyl benzoate esterification

References

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External links

Material Safety Data Sheet
Ethyl esters Benzoate esters Perfume ingredients Flavors Sweet-smelling chemicals