Synthesis and Crystal Structure Analysis of 3,5,5,7-Tetraacetylnonane-2,8-Dione

The reaction of formalin with 2,4-pentanedione yielded a previously unreported compound, 3,5,5,7-tetraacetylnonane-2,8-dione. The molecular structure of this compound was obtained by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The compound crystallized in the triclinic space group Pi with cell parameters a = 9.033(4) A, b = 9.525(2) A, c = 10.477(6) A, a = 82.62 (5) , b = 76.11 (3) , c = 84.44 (3) , V = 865.8(6) A and Z = 2. The structure has been solved by direct methods and refined to R1 = 0.0596 for 3,543 observed reflections I [ 2r(I). Details of the synthesis and the structural characterization of the title compound are presented and discussed.