Mechanistic Investigation of the Reactions between Cyclohexane Carboxaldehyde and Ureido Groups

Model reactions have been performed to explore the reactivity of a variety of ureido groups with cyclohexane carboxaldehyde. The reaction mechanism between ureido and aldehyde functionalities is more complicated than expected. A new heterocyclic product was identified, which is very stable and solvent resistant. The final product profile is reactant and solvent dependent. In the cases of urea, alkyl urea, and benzyl urea, the reaction pathway goes from hemiaminal to aminal, to enamine, and finally to the heterocyclic product with nearly 100% yield. For other investigated ureido groups, the reaction stopped at the enamine product, and products are a mixture of hemiaminal, aminal, and enamine. All reaction steps are reversible except for the last step. The structure of the unique cyclic product was determined combining NMR and LC–MS analysis, and the reaction pathway was verified by kinetics studies