The preparation of pentaerythritol from acetal- dehyde and formaldehyde is always accompanied by the formation of dipentaerythrityl ether.3 Attempts3 to arrive at a mechanism by increas- ing the amount of dipentaerythrityl ether formed in this condensation proved unsuccessful. The only conclusion made was that pentaerythritol was not necessary for the formation of dipenta- erythrityl ether. One possible mechanism for the formation of (1) A. C. S. Pre-Doctoral Fellow, 1946- ...
