Phenylprop-2-enylmagnesium phenoxide

Magnesium turnings (1.0 g, 41 mmol), l-phenyl-3-phenoxyprop-l-ene (2.1 g, 10 mmol) and dry THF (20 ml) are placed in a 50 ml two-necked flask fitted with a reflux condenser and a magnetic stirrer, and furnished with an inert atmosphere. The mixture is warmed and a few drops of 1,2- 

The reaction of dialkylmercury compounds with magnesium is valuable for preparing dialkylmagnesium compounds, free from traces of halide, and either as solids or in a variety of solvents. 

It has been used particularly to prepare samples for physicochemical studies [125-127]. The reaction may be carried out in the absence of solvent, in which case the product is extracted from the magnesium amalgam formed by a suitable solvent [128, 129]. In a solvent such as diethyl ether the reaction may be very slow, but proceeds in virtually quantatitive yield [130,131]. 

---