Construction of amide compounds via acyl transfer reaction mediated by N-aminopyridine salt

To address the shortcomings of traditional amide synthesis, such as catalyst dependence and harsh reaction conditions, this study developed a novel catalyst-free, base-free acyl transfer method mediated by N-aminopyridine salts, enabling the efficient amidation of aromatic amines via a nucleophilic substitution reaction. The reaction is carried out in dichloroethane as the solvent under a nitrogen atmosphere at 80°C for 96 hours. With its mild conditions and simple operation, it exhibits good applicability to a variety of substituted aromatic amines and pyridinium salt substrates, yielding yields ranging from 40% to 80%. Mechanistic studies confirm that the reaction proceeds via a nucleophilic substitution pathway, and scale-up experiments have validated its application potential, providing a new strategy for the green construction of amide bonds. However, the reaction currently exhibits poor reactivity toward aliphatic amines, pyridinium salts with large conjugated structures, and N-substituted aromatic amines; further optimization and investigation are needed.