We describe herein an efficient and catalyst-free methodology for N-formylation and N-methylation of various amines using BH₃N(C₂H₅)₃ as a reductant and CO₂ as C1 source. This system is compatible with a wide range of substrates, such as aromatic secondary amines, aliphatic secondary amines, heterocyclic amines, and primary amines. The desired methylamines and formamides are obtained in excellent yields by changing the reaction solvent, temperature, and the amount of BH₃N(C₂H₅)₃. The optimum yields of methylamines and formamides are up to 99 %, which are comparable to the data using different catalysts. Moreover, it has been demonstrated by mechanistic research that CO₂ was activated by inserting into B–H bonds of BH₃N(C₂H₅)₃ and formamide can be regarded as an intermediate species during the N-methylation formation.

我们在本文中描述了使用 BH ₃ N(C ₂ H ₅ ) ₃作为还原剂和 CO ₂作为 C1 源的各种胺的N-甲酰化和N-甲基化的有效且无催化剂的方法。该系统可与多种底物兼容，例如芳族仲胺，脂族仲胺，杂环胺和伯胺。通过改变反应溶剂、温度和 BH ₃ N(C ₂ H ₅ ) ₃的量，可以以极好的收率获得所需的甲胺和甲酰胺. 甲胺和甲酰胺的最佳产率高达 99%，与使用不同催化剂的数据相当。此外，机理研究表明，CO ₂通过插入BH ₃ N(C ₂ H ₅ ) _{3 的}B-H键而被活化，甲酰胺可被视为N-甲基化形成过程中的中间物质。