The Reaction of Azides with Dichloroindium Hydride: Very Mild Production of Amines and Pyrrolidin-2-imines through Possible Indium-Aminyl Radicals

Organic azides are easily reduced to the corresponding amines by reaction with dichloroindium hydride under very mild conditions and in a highly chemoselective fashion. Azidonitriles give rise to outstanding 5-membered cyclizations affording pyrrolidin-2-imines. A rationalization of the overall experimental data cannot exclude the occurrence of competitive radical and non-radical pathways, but certain results are, however, soundly consistent with the intermediacy of indium-bound nitrogen-centered radicals