MolDraw › Templates › Name reactions › Fischer esterification
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Fischer esterification template
Free template. Download it, or open it in MolDraw to change it first.
Overall reaction with ¹⁸O tracking, the 5-step curly-arrow mechanism, key points and a Dean–Stark setup.
What the template shows
- Acid-catalysed acyl substitution: carboxylic acid + alcohol ⇌ ester + water
- acetic acid
- ethyl acetate
- Alcohol oxygen ends up in the ester
- Acid OH leaves as water
- Mechanism · every step is reversible
- Acid activates the carbonyl
- Nucleophilic addition
- Ethanol attacks the C=O carbon
- Proton transfer
- Turns OH into a good leaving group
- Loss of water
- The C=O bond reforms
- Catalyst: a little conc. H₂SO₄ or TsOH.
- Equilibrium (K ≈ 4): use excess alcohol or remove water (Dean–Stark) to drive it to the ester.
- ¹⁸O labelling shows the ester oxygen comes from the alcohol; the acid loses its OH as water.
- Best with 1° and 2° alcohols; 3° alcohols dehydrate to alkenes instead.
- Steps: protonation, addition, deprotonation, protonation, elimination, deprotonation (PADPED).
- Removing water: Dean–Stark
- Vapour condenses and drips back
- Water sinks below toluene and is held
- Acid, alcohol, H₂SO₄, toluene
- Gentle reflux
- Select any structure to turn it in 3D · every part of this figure is editable
Drawn with 80 atoms, 12 arrows, 20 shapes – every one editable in MolDraw.
Sources
How to use this template
- Press Edit in MolDraw. The template opens on the canvas of the free MolDraw editor.
- Change anything: move structures, edit atoms and labels, recolour highlights or delete what you do not need.
- Add your own structures, arrows and text next to it, or combine several templates on one page.
- Export the drawing as PNG, SVG or PDF for slides, worksheets, theses and papers.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Fischer esterification template free?
Yes. The Fischer esterification template is one of the free MolDraw templates: open it in the editor or download it from this page as SVG or PNG and use it in your slides, worksheets and notes.
Can I edit the Fischer esterification 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.
Which name reactions are included?
Over seventy, covering the reactions most often asked in school-leaving exams (A-level, IB, CBSE, JEE and NEET) and first-year university courses, including condensations, rearrangements, oxidations, reductions and aromatic substitutions.