Selective N-alkylation of amines using nitriles under hydrogenation conditions: facile synthesis of secondary and tertiary amines

Nitriles were found to be highly effective alkylating reagents for the selective N-alkylation of amines under catalytic hydrogenation conditions. For the aromatic primary amines, the corresponding secondary amines were selectively obtained under Pd/C-catalyzed hydrogenation conditions. Although the use of electron poor aromatic amines or bulky nitriles showed a lower reactivity toward the reductive alkylation, the addition of NH(4)OAc enhanced the reactivity to give secondary aromatic amines in good to excellent yields. Under the same reaction conditions, aromatic nitro compounds instead of the aromatic primary amines could be directly transformed into secondary amines via a domino reaction involving the one-pot hydrogenation of the nitro group and the reductive alkylation of the amines. While aliphatic amines were effectively converted to the corresponding tertiary amines under Pd/C-catalyzed conditions, Rh/C was a highly effective catalyst for the N-monoalkylation of aliphatic primary amines without over-alkylation to the tertiary amines. Furthermore, the combination of the Rh/C-catalyzed N-monoalkylation of the aliphatic primary amines and additional Pd/C-catalyzed alkylation of the resulting secondary aliphatic amines could selectively prepare aliphatic tertiary amines possessing three different alkyl groups. According to the mechanistic studies, it seems reasonable to conclude that nitriles were reduced to aldimines before the nucleophilic attack of the amine during the first step of the reaction.     

Thermometric titrations of amines with nitrosyl perchlorate in acetonitrile solvent

Thirteen aliphatic and four aromatic amines, namely diethylamine, triethylamine, n-propylamine, di-n-propylamine, tri-n-butylamine, isopropylamine, di-isopropylamine, n-butylamine, di-n-butylamine, tri-n-butylamine, isobutylamine, sec-butylamine, tert-butylamine, aniline, N,N-dimethylaniline, 2-nitroaniline and 4-nitroaniline were titrated thermometrically with nitrosyl perchlorate in acetonitrile solvent. All the aliphatic amines gave very well-shaped thermometric titration curves. The calculated recovery values of the amines were very good. In comparison, the aromatic amines, aniline and N,N-dimethylaniline gave rather well-shaped titration curves, but the recovery values were fairly low. 2-Nitro- and 4-nitro anilines gave no thermometric response at all. The heats of reaction of the amines with nitrosyl perchlorate are rather high. However, the average heat of reaction of the aromatic amines is approximately two-thirds that of the average heat of the aliphatic amines. To support this method all the amines were also titrated potentiometrically and very similar results to those obtained with the thermometric method are seen. The nitrosyl ion is a Lewis acid, strong enough to titrate quantitatively aliphatic amines in acetonitrile solvent, but not strong enough to titrate aromatic amines at the required level in the same solvent.     

General and efficient synthesis of arylamino- and alkylamino-substituted diphenylporphyrins and tetraphenylporphyrins via palladium-catalyzed multiple amination reactions

A series of arylamino- and alkylamino-substituted diphenylporphyrins and tetraphenylporphyrins were efficiently synthesized by reactions of brominated porphyrin precursors with amines via palladium-catalyzed amination. The multiple amination reactions are general and suitable for a variety of amines, affording the desired aminoporphyrins in good to excellent yields. Examples include aromatic and aliphatic amines, primary and secondary amines, electron-rich, -neutral, and -poor amines as well as heteroaromatic amines and imines.     

Cesium effect: high chemoselectivity in direct N-alkylation of amines

A novel method for the mono-N-alkylation of primary amines, diamines, and polyamines was developed using cesium bases in order to prepare secondary amines efficiently. A cesium base not only promoted alkylation of primary amines but also suppressed overalkylations of the produced secondary amines. Various amines, alkyl bromides, and alkyl sulfonates were examined, and the results demonstrated this methodology was highly chemoselective to favor mono-N-alkylation over dialkylation. In particular, use of either sterically demanding substrates or amino acid derivatives afforded the secondary amines exclusively, offering wide applications in peptidomimetic syntheses.     

Blue Chitin Columns for the Extraction of Heterocyclic Amines from Urine Samples

During normal cooking of meat, a class of mutagenic/carcinogenic compounds called heterocyclic amines is formed. Heterocyclic amines are rapidly absorbed and metabolised in the human body, and for estimation of the intake of heterocyclic amines, it is useful to determinate their levels in the urine. Blue Chitin columns were used for the extraction and purification of heterocyclic amines from urine samples spiked with 14 different heterocyclic amines. The samples were analysed using LC-MS. The results show that Blue Chitin columns provide a straightforward and rapid means of extracting heterocyclic amines from urine samples, and that Blue Chitin column are also useful in the purification of urinary metabolites.     

Solution-phase library synthesis of furanoses

The solution-phase synthesis of amido-, urea-, and aminofuranoses was achieved. Alkylated furanose aldehydes were treated with primary amines in the presence of sodium triacetoxyborohydride to give secondary amines. Subsequent acylation with acid chlorides and isocyanates afforded amidofuranoses and ureafuranoses, respectively. Second, reductive amination of furanose aldehydes with secondary amines yielded tertiary amines. The resulting acetonides were treated with alcohols in the presence of acid to yield mixed acetals. In the library syntheses, functionalized scavenger resins were used in the purification of intermediates and products.     

Fast naked-eye detection of amines with viologen derivatives

Three viologen derivatives with the ability to detect amines were synthesised. Upon interacting with amines, a rapid colour change caused by electron transfer and charge transfer between viologen derivatives and amines can be directly observed by naked eyes. With fluorine substituents, the detection sensitivity of these viologen derivatives for amines is remarkably enhanced to reach the level of ppm.     

New solvent systems for thin-layer chromatographic determination of nine biogenic amines in fish and squid

Different solvent systems were evaluated for their ability to separate biogenic amines by thin-layer chromatography (TLC). Dansyl derivatives of agmatine, putrescine, tryptamine, cadaverine, spermidine, histamine, spermine, tyramine and beta-phenylethylamine were separated using the solvent system chloroform-diethyl ether-triethylamine (6:4:1), followed by chloroform-triethylamine (6:1). After separation dansyl amines were quantified by fluorescence densitometry at 330 nm. Correlation coefficients of linear regressions were higher than 0.99 for all amines, except for agmatine (0.976). Detection limits were 10ng for tryptamine, tyramine, histamine and beta-phenylethylamine, and 5 ng for the other amines. The overall repeatability of the chromatography was 1.82% when including agmatine and barely 1.02% for the other amines. The accuracy ranged from 105.97% (agmatine) to 49.92% (tryptamine). This thin-layer chromatography method was found to be an effective and precise analytical procedure to separate and determine biogenic amines. Its main advantages compared to previous procedures are that it uses less harmful solvent (diethyl ether instead of benzene) and can separate a larger group of biogenic amines.     

AlMe(3)-promoted formation of amides from acids and amines

In the presence of AlMe(3), amines can be directly coupled with acids through dimethylaluminum amide intermediates to form the corresponding amides. A wide range of amines and acids including less nucleophilic amines, bulky amines, unprotected secondary amino acids, and acids with poor solubility were coupled smoothly to give the desired products in 55-98% yields.     

Microwave-assisted solventless reaction of iridium-catalyzed alkylation of amines with alcohols in the absence of base

Microwave-assisted iridium catalyzed alkylation of amines with alcohols was undertaken under solvent-free and base-free conditions. Such alkylation reactions are green, atom-economic, and effective for mono-, di-, and triaklyation of amines. Good isolated yields were obtained for mono- and dialkylated amines using stoichiometric amounts of amines and alcohols, in the presence of 1 mol % [Cp*IrCl(2)](2). Reasonable yields of trialkylated products were obtained using 4 equiv of alcohols.     

Fluorometric sensing of biogenic amines with aggregation-induced emission-active tetraphenylethenes

A fluorometric sensor for detection and identification of biogenic amines with carboxylic acid modified tetraphenylethenes (TPEs) based on aggregation-induced emission (AIE) is reported. A mixture of the carboxylic acid substituted TPE and biogenic amines displayed a blue emission on aggregation, which serves as a "turn-on" fluorescent sensor for the amines, the degree of fluorescence enhancement being dependent on the amine. The chromic responses were utilized to distinguish the amines. A fluorometric sensor array of three TPEs with carboxylic acid groups was shown to identify accurately 10 different amines, including biogenic amines. The response patterns were systematically classified by using linear discriminant analysis (LDA) with 98% classification accuracy. Additional information on the concentration of histamine in a "tuna fish matrix" as an example was assessed by the further analysis of the fluorescence intensity, demonstrating a test for food freshness and quality.     

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.     

Solid-phase synthesis of trisubsituted guanidines

The solid-phase library synthesis of trisubstituted guanidines was accomplished. Amines were loaded onto the 4-formyl-3,5-dimethoxyphenoxymethyl linker via reductive amination. Subsequent acylation with Fmoc-4-aminomethylbenzoic acid followed by Fmoc deprotection gave solid-supported primary amines. Alternatively, sulfonylation of resin-bound secondary amines with 4-cyanobenzenesulfonyl chloride followed by borane reduction also gave solid-supported primary amines. Both resins were acylated with isocyanates to furnish solid-supported ureas. Dehydration of ureas with p-toluenesulfonyl chloride in pyridine gave solid-supported carbodiimides. Nucleophilic addition of amines to the carbodiimide bond followed by cleavage off the solid support gave trisubstituted guanidines.     

Fluorogenic imines for fluorescent detection of Mannich-type reactions of phenols in water

Fluorogenic imines and their precursor amines that can be used for fluorescent visualization of Mannich-type reactions of phenols in aqueous buffers have been developed. The precursor amines are aniline derivatives that are covalently conjugated to fluorophores. These amines and their imine derivatives were nonfluorescent or very weakly fluorescent. On the other hand, addition products of the imines to phenols showed more than 100-fold higher fluorescence than the imines and the precursor amines.     

Photochemical protection of amines with Cbz and Fmoc groups

The photochemical conversion of amines into carbamates was achieved using N-Cbz-, N-Fmoc-, and N-Boc-5,7-dinitroindolines. This reaction allows the protection of amines in neutral medium. Primary and unhindered secondary amines were protected to yield their benzyloxycarbonyl- and 9-fluorenylmethoxycarbonyl derivatives efficiently, whereas bulky amines or anilines gave low yields or no product. On the other hand, the formation of N-Boc compounds, although possible, proceeded only with low yields.     

Chemospecific and ligand free CuI catalysed heterogeneous N-arylation of amines with diheteroaryl halides at room temperature

A ligand free, copper-catalyzed N-arylation reaction of amines with diheteroaryl halides in heterogeneous medium at room temperature has been developed. The protocol is very effective for low boiling amines and useful for amines available in aqueous solution. The reaction gives chemospecific arylation of amines with diheteroaryl halides in the mixture monoheteroaryl halides, diheteroaryl halides and carbocyclic aryl halides. The reaction is also chemospecific with respect to arylation of aliphatic amines. Monoarylated piperazines were also synthesized at room temperature following this protocol.     

Liquid-crystalline behaviour of 4-(ω-aminoalkyloxy)-4'-cyanobiphenyls and their side chain epoxy polymers

Liquid-crystalline side chain polymers were obtained from the ring-opening reaction of epoxy resin with mesogenic amines, 4-(ω-aminoalkyloxy)-4'-cyanobiphenyl. The amines with the alkyl group ranging from five to nine methylene units were synthesized, and were found to exhibit an enantiotropic nematic phase. Polymerization of these amines with ethylene glycol diglycidyl ether at 100°C yielded the polymers of low glass transition and melting temperatures. The mesomorphic properties of the amines and the resulting epoxy polymers are reported.     

Liquid-vapor distribution of amines and acid ionization constants of their ammonium salts in aqueous systems at high temperature

Ammonia and volatile organic amines are used to treat the water in steam generating systems to afford protection of the steam- and feedwater circuits from corrosion by acidic condensate. The base strength and the volatility of the reagent used are two important parameters that have bearing on its ability to inhibit corrosion; they determine the pH of the solution produced from condensing steam. The distribution of thirteen amines between water and steam in the temperature range 150 to 325°C was studied. The amines were chosen on the basis of their known room-temperature base strength. The acid ionization constant of the ammonium salts of seven of these amines was determined by conductivity measurement in the temperature range 25 to 275°C. Amines with high room-temperature base strength and distribution coefficient in the optimum range were chosen for the high-temperature base strength determination. The results of these studies were used to estimate the effectiveness of these amines in raising the pH of the condensate from steam containing carbon dioxide and acetic acid, to provide the basis for further studies on the corrosion inhibition properties of the amines.     

N‐Heterocyclic Carbene–Palladium Complexes as Efficient Catalysts for the Oxidative Carbonylation of Amines to Ureas

A highly efficient oxidative carbonylation reaction of amines to ureas was developed making use of carbene–palladium complexes in the absence of any promoter. Both aliphatic amines and aromatic amines were transformed in good to excellent yields to the expected ureas.     

CZE study on adsorption processes of aliphatic and aromatic amines on PMMA chip

Adsorption processes on a PMMA chip linked with CZE separations of a group of 13 aliphatic and aromatic mono‐ and di‐amines were studied. Due to the lack of chromophores within aliphatic amines, contact conductivity detection implemented directly onto the chip was used for monitoring of cationic CZE separations. To prevent an adsorption of studied amines to the chip channels, the surface of PMMA chip was modified by dynamic coating. Different surface modifiers, such as aliphatic oligoamines (diethylenetriamine and triethylenetetramine), were added to the BGE solutions filling the chip channels. The effect of various concentrations of surface modifiers on peak profiles and separation parameters of amines was monitored. Of these, mainly, aliphatic di‐amines and aromatic mono‐amines adversely affected the CZE resolution of a whole group of analytes by their strong adsorption to the chip channels. A propionate BGE with pH 3.2 containing 100 μM triethylenetetramine and 25 mM 18‐crown‐6‐ether was found suitable for CZE resolution of 12 from a total of 13 amines studied. Simple dynamic modification of the surface of PMMA chip enabled fast (analysis time lasted 9 min), sensitive (sub‐μM LODs reached) and reproducible (1–3% RSD of the peak areas) CZE analysis of the aliphatic and aromatic amines.