Cyclopentadienyl-Free Rare-Earth Metal Amides [{(CH2SiMe2){(2,6-iPr(2)C(6)H(3))N}(2)}Ln{N(SiMe3)(2)}(THF)] as Highly Efficient Versatile Catalysts for C-C and C-N Bond Formation

Efficient methods have been developed for the direct synthesis of amides from aldehydes and a straightforward route to propiolamidines using cyclopentadienyl-free rare-earth metal amides [{(CH2SiMe2){(2,6-iPr(2)C(6)H(3))N}(2))Ln{N(SiMe3)(2)}(THF)] [Ln = Yb (1), Y (2), Dy (3), Sm (4), Nd (5)] as versatile catalysts. The results indicate that in the direct synthesis of amides from aldehydes the catalysts have the activity order 2 > 1 similar to 3 similar to 4 similar to 5. These methods have the advantage of easy preparation of the catalysts, low catalyst loading, high conversion of substrates to products, mild reaction conditions, and compatibility with a wide range of substrates.