Selective N‑Methylation of Aliphatic Amines with CO2 and Hydrosilanes Using Nickel-Phosphine Catalysts

A method using CO2 and PhSiH3 for the methylation of primary and secondary aliphatic amines catalyzed by Ni (0) complexes was developed, selectively producing the monomethylated products in moderate to good yields. For that purpose, two catalysts were used: [(dippe)­Ni­(μ-H)]2 and the commercially available Ni­(COD)2/dcype, both of which were rather efficient in this process. With a slight experimental modification, the reaction allowed the production of monomethylated ureas in good yields by using low amounts of PhSiH3. On the basis of the experimental results, we propose a possible reaction mechanism for the formation of the new C–N bond.