Synthesis of α-Hydroxyl Amides via Direct Amidation of Lactic Acid at Solvent- and Catalyst-Free Conditions

Abstract

The efficient synthesis of α-hydroxy-amides has been achieved by the direct amidation of lactic acid using primary amines. The reactions proceed smoothly under solvent-free conditions without using any catalyst. In general, good to excellent yields of products are obtained.

Lactate anion catalyzes aminolysis of polyesters with anilines

“…N-substituted lactamides are a kind of valuable chemicals widely applied in chemical industries, which are generally produced via dehydrative coupling reactions of LA with amines (16)(17)(18)(19), suffering from inherent disadvantages such as low efficiency due to the equilibrium reaction and waste production caused by removal of acid or base catalysts. From the viewpoint of sustainable development, green and efficient approach is highly required.…”

Methyltrimethoxysilane (MTM) as a Reagent for Direct Amidation of Carboxylic Acids

“…It is important to emphasize that all of these amidations were conducted on a gram scale, where the devised workup procedure gave the pure amide product without the requirement for chromatography. However, attempts to (doubly) amidate malonic acid, or an α-hydroxy acid, to form a Weinreb amide or to use a low-boiling point amine under these conditions gave amides 27–30 (Figure B) in only low yield, albeit pure directly after workup, and these experiments show the current limits of the method.…”