ACS PUBLICATIONS INDUSTRY WEBINAR
Reappraising Dichloromethane: A Hidden Coupling Reagent for Direct Amide Bond Formation
NOVEMBER 10, 2026 | 4:00 PM PT / 6:00 PM CT / 7:00 PM ET
(NOVEMBER 11, 2026 | 5:30 AM India / 8:00 AM Singapore/Beijing/Taipei / 9:00 AM Seoul/Tokyo / 11:00 AM Sydney)
Webinar Overview
What if a common laboratory solvent could replace costly coupling reagents in amide bond formation? Join Professor Sunwoo Lee at Chonnam National Univeristy as he discusses their recent discovery that dichloromethane (CH2Cl2), long regarded simply as a common organic solvent, can serve as an effective coupling reagent for direct amide bond formation.
The CH2Cl2-mediated strategy enables the synthesis of a broad range of amides from carboxylic acids and amines under operationally simple conditions, shows broad substrate compatibility, largely preserves stereochemical integrity for many chiral substrates, and can provide products without column chromatography in selected practical examples. The mechanistic basis of this transformation, along with its scope, limitations, and implications for more practical amide synthesis in both academic and industrial settings, will also be discussed.
As a bonus, attendees will receive free access to the featured research article.
Key Takeaways
- Dichloromethane can be repurposed as a coupling reagent under basic conditions and enable direct amide bond formation with amines.
- The method offers a practical alternative to conventional coupling reagents. It avoids the use of expensive stoichiometric coupling reagents and can reduce purification burden and reagent-derived waste in suitable cases.
- The reaction shows broad synthetic potential, applicable to diverse carboxylic acids and amines, including chiral and complex substrates.
Register for the live webinar.
GUEST SPEAKER
Sunwoo Lee, Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Chemistry
Chonnam National University
Sunwoo Lee is a Professor of Organic Chemistry in the Department of Chemistry at Chonnam National University, Republic of Korea. He received his Ph.D. from POSTECH and conducted postdoctoral research at Yale University with Professor John F. Hartwig. Before joining Chonnam National University, he worked as a senior researcher at LG Chem. His research focuses on the development of practical synthetic methodologies, including amide bond formation, activation of amide C–N bonds, photochemical transformations, and electrochemical methods for converting nitrogen into organic compounds. He has also pioneered decarboxylative coupling reactions of alkynoic acids as a useful strategy for carbon–carbon bond formation. His recent JACS publication reports the discovery that dichloromethane can function as a coupling reagent for direct amide synthesis from carboxylic acids and amines.
FEATURED ARTICLE
Abstract image of journal article: Reappraising Dichloromethane: Uncovering a Hidden Coupling Reagent for Activating Carboxylic Acids in Direct Amide Synthesis
JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY
Amide bonds are essential in biology and chemistry, yet their synthesis often requires expensive reagents or harsh conditions. We report that dichloromethane (CH2Cl2), a commonly used solvent, can function as an effective coupling reagent for the direct amide bond formation between carboxylic acids and amines. Under mild basic and thermal conditions, CH2Cl2 reacts in situ with acids to generate reactive intermediates, affording high yields (up to 92%) across a broad substrate scope while producing only benign byproducts. The reaction is scalable (over 20 g at a 100 mmol scale) ...
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