A GREEN SYNTHETIC PROTOCOL FOR THEPREPARATIONOF 2-HYDROXY-N-PHENYLPROPANAMIDEFROMBIOMASS-DERIVED LACTIC ACID WITHANILINE

Abstract

We report a green and efficient synthetic protocol for the formation of 2-hydroxy-N-phenylpropanamide (anα- hydroxy amide) from lactic acid derived from biomass and aniline. The reaction occurs under neat, solvent-free andcatalyst-free conditions, produces water as the only by-product and gives an isolated yield of 84%at optimisedthermal conditions (1:1 molar ratio, 100 °C, 3 h). Microwave irradiation significantly decreases the reaction timeto15 minutes at 150 °C (91% aniline conversion). The protocol was translated from 1 g to 15 g while maintainingstrong amide selectivity (>95%) and ensuring >80% conversion of aniline after 24 h. 1H and 13CNMRfullycharacterised the product. This method shows that biomass-derived platform chemicals are renewable feedstockscapable of amide bond formation.