What question did this study set out to answer?

To explore the early methods of synthesizing organophosphates and ethers before Williamson's discovery.

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April 30, 2026Open Access

History of organophosphate synthesis: the very early days

Key Points

To explore the early methods of synthesizing organophosphates and ethers before Williamson's discovery.
Review of historical literature on 19th-century ether chemistry and organophosphate synthesis.
Analysis of contributions by early pharmacists-chemists.
Focus on the development of synthesis techniques for phosphoric acid ether.
Identified key figures in early ether synthesis, including Boudet and Boullay.
Established the importance of the reaction between ethyl iodide and potassium salts.
Highlighted Voegeli's contribution to triethyl phosphate synthesis in 1848.

Abstract

The early days of ether chemistry can be divided into two periods: before and after Williamson serendipitous discovery (1851) of a new and efficient way to produce ethers using ethyl iodide and potassium salts. In the early part of the 19th century however, before Williamson, the direct reaction between the “spirit of wine” (ethanol) and acids was the only method of generating the elusive “ethers”. This brief report looks at the pharmacists-chemists involved in the quest to produce phosphoric acid ether in the pre-Williamson period (Boudet, Boullay, Lassaigne, Pelouze), paving the way for Voegeli's synthesis of triethyl phosphate (TEP) in 1848.

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