Amine oxide

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title: "Amine oxide" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["amine-oxides", "functional-groups"] description: "Chemical compound containing the functional group R3NO" topic_path: "general/amine-oxides" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amine_oxide" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Chemical compound containing the functional group R3NO ::

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bf/Amine_Oxides_General_Formulae.png" caption="General structure of an amine oxide"] ::

In chemistry, an amine oxide, also known as an amine N-oxide or simply N-oxide, is a chemical compound that has the chemical formula . It contains a nitrogen-oxygen coordinate covalent bond with three additional hydrogen and/or substituent-groups attached to nitrogen. Sometimes it is written as or, alternatively, as .

In the strict sense, the term amine oxide applies only to oxides of tertiary amines. Sometimes it is also used for the analogous derivatives of primary and secondary amines.

Commonly, amine oxides are white, water-soluble solids:

• trimethylamine-N-oxide], (m.p. 220 °C), an osmolyte found in molluscs
• pyridine-N-oxide, (m.p. 62–67 °C)
• N-methylmorpholine N-oxide, (m.p. 184–187 °C), a nucleophilic oxidant

Applications

Long-chain alkyl amine oxides are used as amphoteric surfactants and foam stabilizers.

Amine oxides are surfactants commonly used in consumer products such as shampoos, conditioners, detergents, and hard surface cleaners. Alkyl dimethyl amine oxide (chain lengths C10–C16) is the most commercially used amine oxide. They are considered a high production volume class of compounds in more than one member country of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD); with annual production over 26000 , in the US, Europe, and Japan, respectively. They serve as stabilizers, thickeners, emollients, emulsifiers, and conditioners with active concentrations in the range of 0.1–10%. and for unique patented uses such as photography. ::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/04/Lauryldimethylamine_oxide.png" caption="[[Lauryldimethylamine oxide]], a fatty amine derivative, is a germicidal ingredient in many cosmetics.]]{{clear-left}}"] ::

Properties

Amine oxides are highly polar molecules and have a polarity close to that of quaternary ammonium salts. Small amine oxides are very hydrophilic and have an excellent water solubility and a very poor solubility in most organic solvents.

Amine oxides are weak bases with a pKb of around 4.5 that form , cationic hydroxylamines, upon protonation at a pH below their pKb.

Formation of amine oxides can also be an unwanted process, such as the oxidation of amine-based reagents. Amines left exposed to air can undergo oxidation from atmospheric oxygen, slowly reacting with oxygen to form N-oxides. This process can cause the amines to turn a yellowish color and the N-oxides can decompose further into byproducts. Oxidation due to air can be prevented by storing reagents under inert atmosphere.

Synthesis

Almost all amine oxides are prepared by the oxidation of either tertiary aliphatic amines or aromatic N-heterocycles. Hydrogen peroxide is the most common reagent both industrially and in academia, however peracids are also important. More specialised oxidising agents can see niche use, for instance Caro's acid or mCPBA. Spontaneous or catalysed reactions using molecular oxygen are rare. Certain other reactions will also produce amine oxides, such as the retro-Cope elimination, however they are rarely employed.

Reactions

Amine oxides exhibit many kinds of reactions.

• Pyrolytic elimination. Amine oxides, when heated to 150–200 °C undergo a Cope reaction to form a hydroxylamine and an alkene. The reaction requires the alkyl groups to have hydrogens at the beta-carbon (i.e. works with ethyl and above, but not methyl)
• Reduction to amines. Amine oxides are readily converted to the parent amine by common reduction reagents including lithium aluminium hydride, sodium borohydride, catalytic reduction, zinc / acetic acid, and iron / acetic acid. Pyridine N-oxides can be deoxygenated by phosphorus oxychloride
• Sacrificial catalysis. Oxidants can be regenerated by reduction of N-oxides, as in the case of regeneration of osmium tetroxide by N-methylmorpholine N-oxide in the Upjohn dihydroxylation.
• O-Alkylation. Pyridine N-oxides react with alkyl halides to the O-alkylated product
• Bis-ter-pyridine derivatives adsorbed on silver surfaces are discussed to react with oxygen to bis-ter-pyridine N-oxide. This reaction can be followed by video-scanning tunneling microscopy with sub-molecular resolution.
• In the Meisenheimer rearrangement, certain N-oxides rearrange to alkoxylamines
• In the , a tertiary N-oxide is cleaved by acetic acid anhydride to the corresponding acetamide and aldehyde: :[[Image:Polonovski Reaktion.svg|650px|Polonovski reaction]]

Metabolites

Amine oxides are common metabolites of medication and psychoactive drugs. Examples include nicotine, Zolmitriptan, and morphine.

Amine oxides of anti-cancer drugs have been developed as prodrugs that are metabolized in the oxygen-deficient cancer tissue to the active drug.

Human safety

Amine oxides (AO) are not known to be carcinogens, dermal sensitizers, or reproductive toxicants. They are readily metabolized and excreted if ingested. Chronic ingestion by rabbits found lower body weight, diarrhea, and lenticular opacities at a lowest observed adverse effect levels (LOAEL) in the range of 87–150 mg AO/kw bw/day. Tests of human skin exposure have found that after 8 hours less than 1% is absorbed into the body. Eye irritation due to amine oxides and other surfactants is moderate and temporary with no lasting effects.

Environmental safety

Amine oxides with an average chain length of 12.6 have been measured to be water-soluble at ~410 g/L. They are considered to have low bioaccumulation potential in aquatic species based on log Kow data from chain lengths less than C14 (bioconcentration factor

References

References

1. (2015). "A quantitative definition of hypervalency". Chemical Science.
2. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). (2006). "Amine Oxides". OECD Existing Chemicals Database.
3. Sanderson, H. (2009). "High Production Volume Chemical Amine Oxides [C''8''–C''20'']". Risk Analysis.
4. Modler, RF. (2004). "CEH Marketing Research Report: Surfactants, Household Detergents, and their Raw Materials". SRI Consulting.
5. {{March6th
6. Albini, Angelo. (1993). "Synthetic utility of amine ''N''-oxides". Synthesis.
7. (2012). "Oxidation of an Organic Adlayer: A Bird's Eye View". [[Journal of the American Chemical Society]].
8. (1990). "The Polonovski Reaction". [[Org. React.]].
9. (1927). ""Sur les aminoxydes des alcaloïdes. III. Action des anhydrides et chlorures d’acides organiques. Préparation des bases nor."". Bull. Soc. Chim. Fr..
10. (September 2021). "Strategic Applications of Named Reactions in Organic Synthesis". Elsevier Science.

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