A convenient one-step synthesis of 3-acetyl-4-hydroxycoumarins

The condensation ofp-bromophenylacetate with malonyl chloride under Friedel-Crafts reaction conditions results in the formation of 6-bromo-3-acety1-4-hydroxy-coumarin. This has been established on the basis of nmr, ir, uv and mass spectral data. The present procedure is applicable to substituted phenylacetates and is a facile one-step synthesis with considerably good yields.