---
title: "Acyl chloride + alcohol → ester Template | MolDraw"
url: https://www.moldraw.com/templates/acyl-chloride-alcohol/
description: "Acyl chloride + alcohol → ester template: Ethanol attacks ethanoyl chloride, the tetrahedral intermediate expels chloride and loss of H⁺ gives ethyl…"
lang: en
publisher: Scidart Academy
generated: 2026-11-13
---
[MolDraw](https://www.moldraw.com/) › [Templates](https://www.moldraw.com/templates/) › [Mechanisms](https://www.moldraw.com/templates/mechanisms/) › Acyl chloride + alcohol → ester

[Mechanisms](https://www.moldraw.com/templates/mechanisms/)Premium

# Acyl chloride + alcohol → ester template

![Acyl chloride + alcohol → ester template: Ethanol attacks ethanoyl chloride, the tetrahedral intermediate expels chloride and loss of H⁺ gives ethyl ethanoate and HCl.](https://www.moldraw.com/templates/acyl-chloride-alcohol.webp)

[Edit in MolDraw](https://www.moldraw.com/)Download with Pro

Premium template. Preview and edit it free in MolDraw; downloading and exporting it is part of [MolDraw Pro](https://www.moldraw.com/pricing).

Ethanol attacks ethanoyl chloride, the tetrahedral intermediate expels chloride and loss of H⁺ gives ethyl ethanoate and HCl.

## Mechanism step by step

Nucleophilic addition–elimination: the alcohol adds, chloride leaves, HCl is lost

1. **Addition** – The O lone pair attacks the C=O carbon
2. **Elimination** – C=O re-forms and chloride leaves
3. **Deprotonation** – Chloride takes H⁺: HCl

## Key points

- Fast and irreversible at room temperature, with steamy fumes of HCl (unlike Fischer esterification).
- Reactivity: acyl chloride > anhydride > ester > amide, following the leaving group (Cl⁻ is the best).
- Water gives the carboxylic acid, NH₃ the amide, amines N-substituted amides, by the same mechanism.
- Pyridine or Et₃N is often added to mop up HCl; phenols, which barely react with acids, give esters this way.

Drawn with 57 atoms, 10 arrows, 9 shapes – every one editable in MolDraw.

## Sources

- [Clayden, Greeves & Warren, Organic Chemistry, 2nd ed., OUP 2012, ch. 10](https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9780199270293) Textbook
- [Smith, March's Advanced Organic Chemistry, 8th ed., Wiley 2020, ch. 16](https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9781119371809) Textbook

## How to use this template

1. Press **Edit in MolDraw**. The template opens on the canvas of the free MolDraw editor.
2. Change anything: move structures, edit atoms and labels, recolour highlights or delete what you do not need.
3. Add your own structures, arrows and text next to it, or combine several templates on one page.
4. Export the drawing as PNG, SVG or PDF for slides, worksheets, theses and papers.

## Frequently asked questions

### Is the Acyl chloride + alcohol → ester template free?

You can preview the Acyl chloride + alcohol → ester template here and open and edit it in MolDraw for free. Downloading or exporting it is part of MolDraw Pro, together with the other premium templates.

### Can I edit the Acyl chloride + alcohol → ester template?

Yes. It opens as an ordinary MolDraw drawing, so every structure, arrow, label and colour can be changed, and you can add your own content around it.

### Is the chemistry checked?

Every structure is checked with RDKit and every curly arrow passes MolDraw’s electron-flow audit. The sources used are listed on this page.

### What is a curly-arrow mechanism template?

A ready-made drawing of a reaction mechanism in which curved arrows show where electron pairs move in each step. You can open it in MolDraw, change the substrate and reuse it.

## More mechanisms templates

[**Aldol addition**Free · Mechanisms](https://www.moldraw.com/templates/aldol-addition/)[**SN2 substitution**Free · Mechanisms](https://www.moldraw.com/templates/sn2-substitution/)[**SN1 substitution**Free · Mechanisms](https://www.moldraw.com/templates/sn1-substitution/)[**E2 elimination**Premium · Mechanisms](https://www.moldraw.com/templates/e2-elimination/)[**E1 elimination**Premium · Mechanisms](https://www.moldraw.com/templates/e1-elimination/)[**Acid-catalysed hemiacetal formation**Premium · Mechanisms](https://www.moldraw.com/templates/hemiacetal-formation/)[**Imine formation**Premium · Mechanisms](https://www.moldraw.com/templates/imine-formation/)[**Ester hydrolysis (saponification)**Premium · Mechanisms](https://www.moldraw.com/templates/ester-saponification/)

## Related pages

[**Curved Arrow Mechanism Worksheet**Free printable worksheet](https://www.moldraw.com/educational-materials/curved-arrow-mechanism-worksheet/)[**Predict the Product Worksheet: Organic Reactions**Free printable worksheet](https://www.moldraw.com/educational-materials/predict-the-product-worksheet/)[**All Mechanisms templates**42 templates](https://www.moldraw.com/templates/mechanisms/)[**All chemistry templates**421 templates in 31 categories](https://www.moldraw.com/templates/)

MolDraw Pro

Download all 421 templates

- Export the 335 premium templates as PNG, SVG or PDF
- AI chemistry assistant
- Structure scanning from images
- Cloud save and teaching slides

[See Pro plans](https://www.moldraw.com/pricing)

Free templates stay free. Every template can be opened and edited in MolDraw.