Manganese Catalyzed Direct Amidation of Esters with Amines

The transition metal catalyzed amide bond forming reaction of esters with amines has been developed as an advanced approach for overcoming the shortcomings of traditional methods. The broad scope of substrates in transition metal catalyzed amidations remains a challenge. Here, a manganese(I)-catalyzed method for the direct synthesis of amides from a various number of esters and amines is reported with unprecedented substrate scope using a low catalyst loading. A wide range of aromatic, aliphatic, and heterocyclic esters, even in fatty acid esters, reacted with a diverse range of primary aryl amines, primary alkyl amines, and secondary alkyl amines to form amides. It is noteworthy that this approach provides the first example of the transition metal catalyzed amide bond forming reaction from fatty acid esters and amines. The acid-base mechanism for the manganese(I)-catalyzed direct amidation of esters with amines was elucidated by DFT calculations.