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General synthesis of primary amines via reductive amination employing a reusable nickel catalyst

Nature Catalysis volume 2, pages 71–77 (2019)Cite this article

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Abstract

Reusable catalysts based on earth-abundant metals with a broad applicability in organic synthesis are a key to a more sustainable production of fine chemicals, pharmaceuticals and agrochemicals. Herein, we report on a nanostructured nickel catalyst for the general and selective synthesis of primary amines via reductive amination, employing ammonia dissolved in water. Our catalyst, which operates at low temperature and pressure, is highly active, reusable and easy to handle. The synthesis from a specific nickel complex and γ-Al2O3 is straightforward, with the ligand–metal combination of this complex being crucial. Aldehydes (including purely aliphatic ones), aryl–alkyl, dialkyl and diaryl ketones can all be converted smoothly into primary amines. In addition, the amination of pharmaceuticals, bioactive compounds and natural products is demonstrated. Many functional groups—including hydrogenation-sensitive examples—are tolerated. We expect that our findings will inspire others to develop reusable and nanostructured earth-abundant metal catalysts for complex organic transformations.

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Fig. 1: Synthesis and characterization of the Ni catalyst.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft for financial support (B1, SFB 840) and E. Arzt for his support through INM. In addition, the authors thank F. Puchtler and M. Ries for PXRD, U. Lacher for HRMS, J. Thiessen for NH3-TPD, J. Schmauch for the assistance with the EELS measurements and J. Seidel, TU Bergakademie Freiberg, Institut für Physikalische Chemie, for XPS.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Chair of Inorganic Chemistry II - Catalyst Design, University of Bayreuth, Bayreuth, Germany

    G. Hahn & R. Kempe

  2. INM – Leibniz Institute for New Materials, Saarbrücken, Germany

    P. Kunnas & N. de Jonge

  3. Department of Physics, Saarland University, Saarbrücken, Germany

    N. de Jonge

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  1. G. Hahn
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Contributions

G.H. carried out the catalyst synthesis, catalyst characterization and the catalytic reactions. P.K. and N.d.J. performed HAADF–STEM imaging coupled with EDX and EELS analysis. G.H. and R.K. designed the experiments and co-wrote the manuscript.

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Correspondence to R. Kempe.

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Supplementary Tables 1–6, Supplementary Notes 1–4, Supplementary Methods, Supplementary Figures 1–60, Supplementary References

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Hahn, G., Kunnas, P., de Jonge, N. et al. General synthesis of primary amines via reductive amination employing a reusable nickel catalyst. Nat Catal 2, 71–77 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41929-018-0202-6

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