Illustrated Glossary of Organic Chemistry

Friedel-Crafts acylation: An electrophilic aromatic substitution reaction in which a hydrogen atom bonded to an aromatic ring is substituted by an acyl group. In the traditional version of the reaction, a molecule containing a benzene ring is reacted with an acid chloride and AlCl₃ (a Lewis acid) to form an aryl ketone.

In this Friedel-Crafts acylation reaction, benzene reacts with acetyl chloride in the presence of AlCl₃ to form methyl phenyl ketone (acetophenone).