Direct amide formation from unactivated carboxylic acids and amines

The direct coupling of unactivated carboxylic acids with amines can be performed in toluene 110 °C in the absence of catalyst. The use of simple zirconium catalysts at 5 mol% loading gave amide formation in as little as 4 h.

Chem. Commun., 2012, 48, 666-668