N-Monomethylation of amines using paraformaldehyde and H 2 .

The selective N-monomethylation of amines is an important topic in fine chemical synthesis. Herein, for the first time, we described a selective N-monomethylation reaction of amines with paraformaldehyde and H ₂ in the presence of a CuAlO _x catalyst. A variety of amines, including primary aromatic amines, benzylamine and cyclohexylamine, as well as secondary amines, have been shown to be compatible with this reaction.