Humic acid-catalyzed efficient synthesis of α-aminonitriles in water using potassium hexacyanoferrate (II) as a cyanide source

A highly efficient, one-pot, three-component Strecker reaction for the synthesis of α-aminonitriles from carbonyl compounds, amines, and potassium hexacyanoferrate (II) (K4[Fe(CN)6]) in the presence of a catalytic amount of humic acid catalyst in water at room temperature has been developed. Advantages of this methodology are use of inexpensive, commercially available, environmentally friendly and reusable organocatalyst, environmentally benign and inexpensive cyanide source, simple experimental and work-up procedure, high yields, room temperature reaction, water as a green solvent and scaled-up synthesis.