4-Dimethylaminopyridine
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4-Dimethylaminopyridine
IUPAC name	4-Dimethylaminopyridine
Other names	DMAP, 4-(Dimethylamino)-pyridine, N,N-Dimethyl-4-aminopyridin
Identifiers
CAS number	1122-58-3
SMILES	CN(C)C1=CC=NC=C1
Properties
Molecular formula	C7H10N2
Molar mass	122.17 g/mol
Melting point	110-113 °C
Boiling point	162 °C at 50 mmHg
Except where noted otherwise, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C, 100 kPa) Infobox references

DMAP redirects here. For the cyanide antidote see 4-Dimethylaminophenol

4-Dimethylaminopyridine (DMAP) is a nucleophilic catalyst which catalyzes a variety of reactions such as esterifications with anhydrides, Baylis-Hillman reaction, hydrosilylation, tritylation, the Steglich rearrangement, Staudinger synthesis of β-lactams and many more.¹²

Esterification catalyst

In the case of esterification with acetic anhydrides the currently accepted mechanism involves three steps. First, DMAP and acetic anhydride form in a pre-equilibrium reaction a labile ion pair between the acetate and the acetylpyridinium ion. In the second step the alcohol attacks the acetyl group to form the ester. In this step the acetate counterion pulls away the proton from the alcohol while the alcohol forms a covalent bond with the acetyl group. The bond from the acetyl group to the catalyst gets cleaved to generate the catalyst and the ester. The described bond formation and breaking process runs synchronous concerted without the appearance of a tetrahedral intermediate. The acetic acid formed will then protonate the DMAP. In the last step of the catalytic cycle the auxiliary base (usually triethylamine) deprotonates the protonated DMAP, reforming the catalyst. The reaction runs through the described nucleophilic reaction pathway irrespective of the anhydride used.³

References

1. ^ Catalysis by 4-dialkylaminopyridines Donald J Berry, Charles V Digiovanna, Stephanie S Metrick and Ramiah Murugan Arkivoc O-401R 2001 Online review
2. ^ 4-Dialkylaminopyridines as Highly Active Acylation Catalysts Höfle, G., Steglich, W., Vorbrüggen, H. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. Engl. 1978 , 17 , 569-583.
3. ^ The DMAP-Catalyzed Acetylation of Alcohols - A Mechanistic Study (DMAP = 4-(dimethylamino) -pyridine) S. Xu, I. Held, B. Kempf, H. Mayr, Wolfgang Steglich, H. Zipse, Chem. Eur. J. 2005, 11, 4751 - 4757

Further reading

• B. Neises, W. Steiglich (1990). "Esterification of Carboxylic Acids with Dicyclohexylcarbodiimide/4-Dimethylaminopyridine: tert-Butyl Ethyl Fumarate". Org. Synth.; Coll. Vol. 7: 93.