Microwave-assisted synthesis of primary amine HX salts from halides and 7 M ammonia in methanol

The atom economical synthesis of hydrogen halide salts of primary amines, directly from the corresponding halides, avoids the production of significant amounts of secondary amine side products, and requires only evaporation of the solvent to access the products in yields generally greater than 90%. The procedure uses microwave irradiation in 7 M ammonia in methanol (Aldrich) at 130 °C from 0.5 to 2.5 h and works on a variety of alkyl halides, as well as mesylates and tosylates. Benzylamines are obtained from benzyl halides without significant amounts of the secondary amine side products that result without microwave heating. Direct isolation of even highly volatile primary amines as their hydrogen halide salts makes the method ideal for use in parallel synthesis.