Direct amidation of carboxylic acids with amines under microwave irradiation using silica gel as a solid support

Abstract

A highly improved and green methodology for the direct amidation of carboxylic acids with amines using silica gel as a solid support and catalyst is described. The scope of this method is exemplified by the use of several aliphatic, aromatic, unsaturated and fatty acids. The reaction is also applied to different primary and secondary amines. Typically, the amines should be aliphatic, but aromatic amines can be used as well, though with lower yields. Several experiments to illustrate the selectivity of this methodology were also carried out with several more functionalized acids and amines. This approach is a substantial improvement over other previously described methods in amide synthesis.