The Ultimate Acylation - American History Information Guide and Reference

In chemistry, acylation is the process of adding an acyl group to a compound. The compound providing the acyl group is called the acylating agent.

Because they form a strong electrophile when treated with some metal catalysts, acyl halides are commonly used as acylating agents. For example, Friedel-Crafts acylation uses acetyl chloride (C H₃C O Cl) as the agent and aluminum chloride (AlCl₃) as a catalyst to add an acetyl group to benzene:

Friedel-Crafts acylation of benzene by ethanoyl chloride

Anhydrides of carboxylic acids are also commonly used acylating agents to acylate amines to form amides or acylate alcohols to form esters. Succinic acid is also commonly used in a specific type of acylation called succination. Oversuccination occurs when more than one succinate adds to a single compound.