TheLa equilibriumcostante constantdi forequilibrio suchper reactionstali isreazioni aboutè di circa 5 forper typicalesteri esterstipici, e.g.,ad ethylesempio acetatel'acetato di etile.<ref>{{citeCita journalpubblicazione | last1rivista = Williams[[Journal |of first1the =American RogerChemical Society|J. |Am. last2Chem. = GabrielSoc.]] | first2autore = AltonWilliams |Roger last3J.; =Gabriel Alton; Andrews | first3 = Roy C. | year = 1928 | titletitolo = Thehe Relation Between the Hydrolysis Equilibrium Constant of Esters and the Strengths of the Corresponding Acids | journalanno = J. Am. Chem. Soc.1928 |volume = 50 | issuenumero = 52| pagespp = 1267–1271 |lingua = en |doi = 10.1021/ja01392a005}}</ref> TheLa reactionreazione isavviene slowlentamente. inUn thetipico absencecatalizzatore ofper atali catalyst.reazioni è l'[[Sulfuricacido acidsolforico]] is a typical catalyst for this reaction. ManyVengono otherutilizzati acidsanche arealtri alsoacidi usedcome such asgli [[Dowex |polymericacidi sulfonicsolfonici acidspolimerici]]. SinceEssendo esterificationuna isreazione highlyfortemente reversiblereversibile, thela yieldresa ofdell'estere theaumenta esterusando canil be[[principio improveddi using [[Le Chatelier's principle]]:
* UsingUsare the alcoholl'alcool in large excesseccesso (i.e., ascioè acome solventsolvente).
* Usare un agente disidratante: l'acido solforico non solo catalizza ma elimina l'acqua (un prodotto di reazione). Altri agenti essiccanti come i [[setacci molecolari]] sono anche efficaci.
* Using a dehydrating agent: sulfuric acid not only catalyzes the reaction but sequesters water (a reaction product). Other drying agents such as [[molecular sieves]] are also effective.
* RemovalRimuovere ofacqua watercon byun physicalmezzo meansfisico suchcome asla [[distillationdistillazione]], as a low-boilingun [[azeotropeazeotropo]]swithbasso bollente con [[toluene]], in conjunctioncombinazione withcon aun [[apparato di Dean-Stark apparatus]].
Reagents are known that drive the dehydration of mixtures of alcohols and carboxylic acids. One example is the [[Steglich esterification]], which is a method of forming esters under mild conditions. The method is popular in [[peptide synthesis]], where the substrates are sensitive to harsh conditions like high heat. DCC ([[dicyclohexylcarbodiimide]]) is used to activate the carboxylic acid to further reaction. [[4-Dimethylaminopyridine]] (DMAP) is used as an acyl-transfer [[catalyst]].<ref>{{OrgSynth | author = B. Neises | author2 = W. Steglich |name-list-style=amp | title = Esterification of Carboxylic Acids with Dicyclohexylcarbodiimide/4-Dimethylaminopyridine: ''tert''-Butyl ethyl fumarate | collvol = 7 | collvolpages = 93 | prep = cv7p0093}}</ref>
