Solvent‐Free Thermal Dehydration of Pentitols on Zeolites

Abstract Dehydration of D‐arabinitol, ribitol, and xylitol at high temperature in the presence of molecular sieves without solvent in an argon atmosphere is described. Products arising after the dehydration–cyclization (cyclodehydration) reaction with retention or inversion of the configuration of asymmetric carbon atoms, were observed. Complete analytical separations of exhaustively O‐acetylated reaction products were achieved by means of GC. The chemical structures of the compounds obtained were assigned using co‐injection with standards. #Dedicated to Professor Gerard Descotes on the occasion of the jubilee of his scientific career.