N-Bromination of amides

Our recent studies on effective bromination and oxidation using benzyltrimethylammonium tribromide (BTMA Br3), stable solid, are described. Those involve electrophilic bromination of aromatic compounds such as phenols, aromatic amines, aromatic ethers, acetanilides, arenes, and thiophene, a-bromination of arenes and acetophenones, and also bromo-addition to alkenes by the use of BTMA Br3. Furthermore, oxidation of alcohols, ethers, 1,4-benzenediols, hindered phenols, primary amines, hydrazo compounds, sulfides, and thiols, haloform reaction of methylketones, N-bromination of amides, Hofmann degradation of amides, and preparation of acylureas and carbamates by the use of BTMA Br3 are also presented. 

The N-bromination of amides with bromine and alkali has been extensively researched as the first step of the Hofmann degradation. However, it is difficult to isolate the N-bromoamides because of their subsequent reaction to produce amines, which proceeds very readily under excessive alkaline conditions. Now, the reaction of amides with a stoichiometric amount of BTMA Br3 and sodium hydroxide in ice-water gave N-bromoamides in fairly good yields. Our method can be applied to various types of aliphatic, aromatic, and heterocyclic amides (Fig. 31) (ref. 39). 

Fig. 31. N-Bromination of amides with BTMA Br3 Hofmann degradation of amides...

Allylic bromination of olefins, 104 Amides, acidolysis, 569 acylation, 576 N-alkylation, 572, 678 condensation with aldehydes, 575, 576... 

The amide N-H may also be halogenated, oxidized and nitrosated. A -Bromosuccinimide (NBS), like a number of other iV-halo compounds, readily undergoes a radical fission to give a bromine radical. This provides a useful reagent for radical bromination at, for example, allylic or benzylic positions. In the presence of acid, NBS is also a mild source of the halonium ion, which is used for the addition of hypobromous acid (Scheme 3.74) to alkenes or for the bromination of reactive aromatic rings. 

The reaction is applicable to the preparation of amines from amides of aliphatic aromatic, aryl-aliphatic and heterocyclic acids. A further example is given in Section IV,170 in connexion with the preparation of anthranilic acid from phthal-imide. It may be mentioned that for aliphatic monoamides containing more than eight carbon atoms aqueous alkaline hypohalite gives poor yields of the amines. Good results are obtained by treatment of the amide (C > 8) in methanol with sodium methoxide and bromine, followed by hydrolysis of the resulting N-alkyl methyl carbamate ... 

Entry to the ugibohlin, phakellin, and isophakellin ABC ring systems was achieved via intramolecular N(l)-C(3) cyclizations of the Weinreb amide 169 of pyrrole-proline 168 or its brominated derivatives to give the bispyrrolopyr-azine 170 (Scheme 12) <2005TL249>. 

A-Halogeno-amides are familiar and convenient sources of positive halogen for the organic chemist, and the 2 1 complex formed in benzene between diazabicyclooctane (DABCO) and /V-bromsuccinimide (NBS) [48] (the numbers are the observed interatomic distances in angstroms) in effect shows one such reagent in action (Crowston et al., 1984). The N-Br-N angle is close to linear [175.1(2) A], and the bromine is poised almost midway between the two nitrogen atoms, which are of similar basicity. The... 

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