Sodium hypophosphite mediated reductive amination of carbonyl compounds with N,N-dialkylformamides

Herein we report a transition-metal- and acid-free protocol for the reductive amination of carbonyl compounds with DMF using a substoichiometric amount of NaH2PO2 center dot H2O. A set of various N,N-dimethylamines were obtained in moderate to excellent yields without chromatographic purification. The general trends and limitations of the method with different formamides as sources of dialkyl-fragments were explored.

Automated summary

Here, we report a metal- and acid-free protocol for the reductive amination of carbonyl compounds using DMF and a substoichiometric amount of NaH2PO2·H2O. Various N,N-dimethylamines were obtained in moderate to excellent yields without the need for chromatographic purification. The method's trends and limitations with different formamides as sources of dialkyl fragments were explored.