Development of a General Non‐Noble Metal Catalyst for the Benign Amination of Alcohols with Amines and Ammonia

The N‐alkylation of amines or ammonia with alcohols is a valuable route for the synthesis of N‐alkyl amines. However, as a potentially clean and economic choice for N‐alkyl amine synthesis, non‐noble metal catalysts with high activity and good selectivity are rarely reported. Normally, they are severely limited due to low activity and poor generality. Herein, a simple NiCuFeO_x catalyst was designed and prepared for the N‐alkylation of ammonia or amines with alcohol or primary amines. N‐alkyl amines with various structures were successfully synthesized in moderate to excellent yields in the absence of organic ligands and bases. Typically, primary amines could be efficiently transformed into secondary amines and N‐heterocyclic compounds, and secondary amines could be N‐alkylated to synthesize tertiary amines. Note that primary and secondary amines could be produced through a one‐pot reaction of ammonia and alcohols. In addition to excellent catalytic performance, the catalyst itself possesses outstanding superiority, that is, it is air and moisture stable. Moreover, the magnetic property of this catalyst makes it easily separable from the reaction mixture and it could be recovered and reused for several runs without obvious deactivation.     

Grafting onto wool. VIII. Graft copolymerization of methyl methacrylate (MMA) by use of Ce4+ -amine system as redox initiator

In an attempt to determine the role of a variety of amines in ceric-ion-initiated grafting, poly-(methyl methacrylate) was graft copolymerized onto Himachali wool in the presence of a variety of amines that included ammonia, diethylamine (DEA), dipropylamine (DPA), triethylamine (TEA), triethanol amine, and pyridine. All amines (with the exception of DEA) reduced the percent grafting. The reactivity of various amines toward graft copolymerization followed the order: DEA > DPA > NH₃ > TEA > triethanol amine > Py. An explanation based on the basicity, nucleophilicity, and steric requirement of amines is given to explain the observed reactivity order shown by the various amines toward graft copolymerization.     

Hydrogen bonding by alcohols and amines

The pure base calorimetric method has been used to determine the enthalpies of hydrogen bond complex formation between aliphatic amines and alcohols. The enthalpies of complexation for the series methanol-n-butanol bonding with triethylamine increase with decreasing alkyl chain length in accordance with the electron donating properties of alkyl groups. Unexpectedly, the enthalpies for the complexes of n-butanol with tributylamine, tripropylamine, and triethylamine increase with decreasing alkyl chain length.Primary and secondary amines form hydrogen bonded complexes with n-butanol in which the amine protons form an NH···O bond with the alcohol and the alcohol hydroxyl proton donates a proton to the amine nitrogen. The difference in enthalpy of complex formation between tertiary amines and secondary amines is largely accounted for by the involvement of the amine proton of the secondary amine. Primary amines, like secondary amines, donate only one proton to the complex with n-butanol but have a larger complex enthalpy than secondary amines probably because of steric hindrance and differences in basicity.     

Reactions of the carbonate radical with aliphatic amines

Carbonate radicals react with aliphatic amines by a dual mechanism, viz. (i) hydrogen abstraction and (ii) electron transfer. The former is more probable with primary amines. Tertiary amines react via electron transfer. Both mechanisms may operate in secondary amines. Cyclic tertiary amines react with different rates and their relative reactivities are explained on the basis of the concept of Hoffmann's ‘through bond’ interaction.     

Preparation of monodispersed vinylpyridine–divinylbenzene porous copolymer resins and their application to high-performance liquid chromatographic separation of aromatic amines

For the separation of aromatic amines, two types of monodispersed porous polymer resins were prepared by the copolymerization of 2-vinylpyridine and 4-vinylpyridine with divinylbenzene in the presence of template silica gel particles (particle size 5 μm), followed by dissolution of the template silica gel in an alkaline solution. The transmission electron micrographs and the scanning electron micrograph revealed that these templated polymer resins have a spherical morphology with a good monodispersity and porous structure. Using these monodispersed polymer resins, the high-performance liquid chromatographic separation of aromatic amines in the mobile phases of pHs 2.0, 2.9, 4.1, 7.2 and 11.7 were carried out. The 2-vinylpyridine–divinylbenzene copolymer resins showed slightly stronger retentions for aromatic amines than the 4-vinylpyridine–divinylbenzene copolymer resins. Under acidic conditions (around pH 2.0), aniline and the toluidines showed no retention on these copolymer resins due to the repulsion between the cationic forms of these amines and pyridinium cations in the stationary phase, whereas less basic aromatic amines or non-basic acetanilide showed slight retentions. Above pH 4.1, the separation of aromatic amines with these polymer resins showed a typical reversed-phase mode separation. Therefore, the separation patterns of aromatic amines are effectively tunable by changing the pH value of the mobile phases. A good separation of eight aromatic amines was achieved at pH 2.9 using the 2-vinylpyridine–divinylbenzene copolymer resins.     

First-principle predictions of basicity of organic amines and phosphines in acetonitrile

Amines and phosphines are widely utilized as bases and basic organocatalysts in organic chemistry. Thus it is highly valuable to develop a coherent theoretical method that can accurately predict the basicity of structurally unrelated amines and phosphines in organic solvents from the first principles. Herein we developed the first ab initio protocol that could predict the pK_a value of any protonated amine or phosphine in acetonitrile through systematic benchmarking. By comparing to a variety of available experimental data (total number=98), it was determined that the precision of the optimized method in basicity prediction was as low as 1.1 pK_a unit. With the powerful new method in hand, we subsequently conducted some systematic studies about the basicity of organic amines and in particular phosphines, for which very few experimental data were available. It was found that the solvent exerted profound effects on the basicity of amines and phosphines. Accordingly we concluded that it was not valid to use gas-phase data to interpret the solution-phase basicity of amines and phosphines. Next we reported the basicity of a number of synthetically important aliphatic and aromatic amines and phosphines in acetonitrile. We also compared, for the first time, the α-substituent effects on the basicity of aliphatic amines and phosphines and the remote substituent effects on the basicity of aromatic amines and phosphines. Finally, we studied for the first time the basicity of cyclic amines and phosphines. It was found that the ring strain exerted some interesting effects on the basicity of amines and phosphines.     

Identifying a Highly Active Copper Catalyst for KA2 Reaction of Aromatic Ketones

The well‐established A³ coupling reaction of terminal alkynes, aldehydes, and amines provides the most straightforward approach to propargylic amines. However, the related reaction of ketones, especially aromatic ketones, is still a significant challenge. A highly efficient catalytic protocol has been developed for the coupling of aromatic ketones with amines and terminal alkynes, in which Cu^I, generated in situ from the reduction of CuBr₂ with sodium ascorbate, has been identified as the highly efficient catalyst. Since propargylic amines are versatile synthetic intermediates and important units in pharmaceutical products, such an advance will greatly stimulate research interest involving the previously unavailable propargylic amines.     

Cobalt-Catalyzed Enantioselective Hydroamination of Arylalkenes with Secondary Amines

Catalytic asymmetric hydroamination of alkenes with Lewis basic amines is of great interest but remains a challenge in synthetic chemistry. Here, we developed a Co-catalyzed asymmetric hydroamination of arylalkenes directly using commercially accessible secondary amines. This process enables the efficient access to valuable α-chiral tertiary amines in good to excellent yields and enantioselectivities. Mechanistic studies suggest that the reaction includes a CoH-mediated hydrogen atom transfer (MHAT) with arylalkenes, followed by a pivotal catalyst controlled S_N2-like pathway between in situ generated electrophilic cationic alkylcobalt(IV) species and free amines. This radical-polar crossover strategy not only provides a straightforward and alternative approach for the synthesis of enantioenriched α-tertiary amines, but also underpins the substantial opportunities in developing asymmetric radical functionalization of alkenes with various free nucleophiles in oxidative MHAT catalysis.     

Reaction of Thiocarbonyl Fluoride Generated from Difluorocarbene with Amines

The reaction of thiocarbonyl fluoride, generated from difluorocarbene, with various amines under mild conditions is described. Secondary amines, primary amines, and o ‐phenylenediamines are converted to thiocarbamoyl fluorides, isothiocyanates, and difluoromethylthiolated heterocycles, respectively. Thiocarbamoyl fluorides were further transformed into trifluoromethylated amines by using a one‐pot process. Thiocarbonyl fluoride is generated in situ and is rapidly fully converted in one pot under mild conditions; therefore, no special safety precautions are needed.     

The Reaction of Amines with Benzyl Halides under CO2 Atmosphere

To find a useful, practical, and ecologically safer way to synthesize protected amines, the reactions of amines with benzyl halides under CO₂ atmosphere were systematically examined. For primary amines, the CO₂‐inserted products were obtained in higher yields in the presence of DBU as a base, under a high pressure of CO₂, and in a low‐polarity solvent (toluene/hexane 1 : 1). Secondary amines gave only low yields of CO₂‐inserted products.     

Sterically-Hindered Amines for Acid-Gas Absorption

Abstract

This paper reviews sterlcally-hindered amines for removal of add gases such as CO₂ and H₂S from gaseous streams. Steric hindrance of amines reduces carbamate stability. Moderately hindered amines are characterized by high rates of CO₂ absorption and high capacities for CO₂. The moderately hindered amine in use with organic solvent has considerably higher capacity than the conventional amine-solvent system for simultaneous removal of CO₂and H₂S from synthesis gas and natural gas. A severely-hindered-amine absorbent, characterized by a very low rate of CO₂absorption, has much higher capacity and selectivity than the current industry standard, methyldiethanolamine, for selective removal of H₂S from CO₂-containing streams. Use of hindered amines represents new advances in gas treating. Hindered amines save energy and capital in gas treating significantly. In addition, hindered amines used commercially have much better stability than conventional amines. As of today, fourteen commercial plants use hindered amines.     

Selective Analysis of Secondary Amines Using Liquid Chromatography with Electrochemical Detection (LC‐EC)

In a mixture of primary and secondary aliphatic amines, the primary amines were derivatized (masked) with o‐phthalaldehyde (OPA) followed by derivatization of the remaining secondary amines with ferrocenecarboxylic acid chloride (FAC). The “tagged” amines were analyzed by LC‐EC (liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection) using in‐series dual electrode detection. Chemically‐reversible oxidation of the FAC tagged secondary amines and their subsequent complementary oxidation and reduction signals coupled with chemically‐irreversible oxidation of OPA tagged primary amines provided the selectivity for quantitative secondary amine analysis. The procedure was also applied for the selective identification of fragment 4–11 (N‐terminus‐proline) of Substance P in the presence of other Substance P fragments with primary amino acids as their N‐termini.     

Oxidation of amines and sulfides by 3-bromo-4,5-dihydro-5-hydroperoxy-4,4-dimethyl-3,5-diphenyl-3h-pyrazole

The reaction of 3-bromo-4,5-dihydro-5-hydroperoxy-4,4-dimethyl-3,5-diphenyl-3H-pyrazole with tertiary amines and sulfides produced amine oxides and sulfoxides in high yield with k₂'s for amines similar to those reported for reaction of amines with a 4a-hydroperoxyflavin.     

Study on the reactions of 4-amino-5-nitro-6-phenylethynylpyrimidines with amines and thiols

Reactions of 4-amino-5-nitro-6-phenylethynylpyrimidines with amines and thiols have been investigated. Pyridine catalyzes rearrangement of the title compounds into 6-phenyl-7-oxo-7H-pyrrolo[3,2-d]pyrimidine-5-oxides. Primary and secondary amines and thiols take part in a regio- and stereoselective addition reaction to the triple bond of 5-nitro-6-phenylethynylpyrimidines to form the corresponding syn-addition (in the case of secondary amines) or anti-addition (in the case of primary amines or thiols) products.     

Factors affecting the efficiency and stereoselectivity of α-amino acid synthesis by the Petasis reaction

The use of chiral secondary amines containing only one branched substituent has been shown to give optimal yields and stereoselectivities in the preparation of α-amino acids using the Petasis reaction. While the use of chiral primary amines generally gives products in low to moderate diastereoselectivity, chiral secondary amines generally give products in >95:5 diastereoselectivity. Additionally, the use of amines with two chiral (and by definition, branched) N-alkyl substituents results in significantly reduced yields with respect to to secondary amines with one or no branched N-alkyl substituents.     

Direct access to CF3-propargyl amines and conversion to difluoromethyl imines

Trifluoromethyl aldimines reacted with acetylides in toluene at −78 °C to provide propargyl amines in good yields. From a chiral trifluoromethyl aldimine, the propargyl amines were obtained with excellent diastereoselectivities (de >98%). Trifluoromethyl propargyl amines could be further converted into difluoromethyl imines under basic conditions.     

Regioselective Insertion of o‐Carborynes into the α‐CH Bond of Tertiary Amines: Synthesis of α‐Carboranylated Amines

o‐Carboryne can undergo α‐C? H bond insertion with tertiary amines, thus affording α‐carboranylated amines in very good regioselectivity and isolated yields. In this process, the nucleophilic addition of tertiary amines to the multiple bond of o‐carboryne generates a zwitterionic intermediate. An intramolecular proton transfer, followed by a nucleophilic attack leads to the formation of the final product. Thus, regioselectivity is highly dependent upon the acidity of α‐C? H proton of tertiary amines. This approach serves as an efficient methodology for the preparation of a series of 1‐aminoalkyl‐o‐carboranes.     

N-Benzyloxycarbonylation of amines in the ionic liquid [TPA][l-Pro] as an efficient reaction medium

An efficient method for the N-benzyloxycarbonylation of amines is described. The reaction of amines with Cbz-Cl in the ionic liquid [TPA][l-Pro] afforded the corresponding N-Cbz derivatives in excellent yields. The method is versatile for the preparation of a wide variety of N-Cbz derivatives of aliphatic and aromatic amines.     

Trace determination of short-chain aliphatic amines in biological samples by micellar electrokinetic capillary chromatography with laser-induced fluorescence detection

In this study, a new capillary electrophoresis (CE) method is described originally for the sensitive and selective determination of short-chain aliphatic amines in biological samples. These amines were converted into their N-hydroxysuccinimidyl fluorescein-O-acetate (SIFA) derivatives and measured by micellar electrokinetic capillary chromatography with laser-induced fluorescence detection. The derivatization conditions and separation parameters for the aliphatic amines were optimized in detail. The SIFA-labeled amines were fully separated within 8.5 min using 25 mM pH 9.6 boric acid electrolyte containing 60 mM sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS). The parameters of validation such as linearity of response, precision and detection limits were determined. The detection limits were obtained in the range from 0.02 to 0.1 nM, which was the lowest value reported by CE methods. The developed method was successfully employed to monitor aliphatic amines in serum and cells samples. After comparison of other CE methods using different fluorescent probes, the present method represents a powerful tool for the trace determination of aliphatic amines in complex biological samples.     

Development and evaluation of gas and liquid chromatographic methods for the analysis of fatty amines

In contrast to the plethora of publications on the separation of fatty acids, analogous studies involving fatty amines are scarce. A recently introduced ionic‐liquid‐based capillary column for GC was used to separate trifluoroacetylated fatty amines focusing on the analysis of a commercial sample. Using the ionic liquid column (isothermal mode at 200°C) it was possible to separate linear primary fatty amines from C₁₂ to C₂₂ chain length in less 25 min with MS identification. The log of the amine retention factors are linearly related to the alkyl chain length with a methylene selectivity of 0.117 kcal/mol for the saturated amines and 0.128 kcal/mol for the mono‐unsaturated amines. The sp² selectivity for unsaturated fatty amines also could be calculated as 0.107 kcal/mol for the ionic liquid column. The commercial sample was quantified by GC with flame ionization detection (FID). An LC method also was developed with a reversed phase gradient separation using acetonitrile/formate buffer mobile phases and ESI‐MS detection. Native amines could be detected and identified by their single ion monitoring chromatograms even when partial coelution was observed. The analysis of the commercial sample returned results coherent with those obtained by GC–FID and with the manufacturer's data.