Ethyl trifluoroacetate is a useful intermediate in the synthesis of pharmaceutical and agricultural chemicals. It is useful as a reagent for the mild N-trifluoroacetylation of amino acids and peptides1 and differentiating amino groups.2 It is also used for: Synthesis of trifluoromethyl ketones from Grignard reagents,3 Reaction with E-2-acetyl-2,3-diphenyloxirane to make 3-hydroxy-2,3-diphenyl-6-trifluoromethyl-2,3-dihydro-4H-pyran-4-one,4 and Synthesis of trifluoroacetyltrimethylsilane via its ethyltrimethylsilyl ketal.5
1. J. Org. Chem. 1979, 44, 2805.
2. Tetrahedron Lett. 1995, 36, 7357.
3. J. Org. Chem. 1987, 52, 5026.
4. Chem. Heterocycl. Compd. 2001, 37, 540.
5. Tetrahedron Lett. 2003, 44, 3741.