Catalytic synthesis of acetals (ketals) by FeCl_3

The acetalization and ketalization of various aldehydes and ketones with glycols using FeCl3 as catalyst were studied.The effects of reaction time,mole ratio of reactants and amount of catalyst on the yield of acetals(ketals) were investigated.The results showed that FeCl3 was an efficient catalyst for the acetalization and ketalization with high conversion and selectivity in mild conditions.The best reaction conditions were: molar ratio of aldehydes and ketones to glycol 1∶1.2,catalyst amount 2 g/mol aldehydes or ketones,reaction time 2 h.The conversion was over 95% and selectivity was over 97%.