Traditional methylamine synthesis from methanol and ammonia relies on high-temperature and high-pressure reaction conditions, resulting in byproducts and challenging purification. Now, electrochemical nitromethane reduction under mild conditions has been realized with a copper catalyst, enabling selective and sustainable methylamine synthesis.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Access Nature and 54 other Nature Portfolio journals
Get Nature+, our best-value online-access subscription
$32.99 / 30 days
cancel any time
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 12 print issues and online access
$259.00 per year
only $21.58 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on SpringerLink
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
References
Alonso-Caballero, A. et al. Nat. Chem. 13, 172–181 (2021).
Huang, X. et al. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 142, 6149–6157 (2020).
Corbin, D. R., Schwarz, S. & Sonnichsen, G. C. Catal. Today 37, 71–102 (1997).
Meyer, T. H., Choi, I., Tian, C. & Ackermann, L. Chem 6, 2484–2496 (2020).
Liu, C., Chen, F., Zhao, B.-H., Wu, Y. & Zhang, B. Nat. Rev. Chem. 8, 277–293 (2024).
Li, R. et al. Nat. Chem. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41557-025-01864-2 (2025).
Di Martino, R. M. C., Maxwell, B. D. & Pirali, T. Nat. Rev. Drug Discov. 22, 562–584 (2023).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Competing interests
The authors declare no competing interests.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
von Münchow, T., Ackermann, L. Expedient access to methylamine with potential. Nat. Chem. 17, 1144–1145 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41557-025-01877-x
Published:
Issue date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41557-025-01877-x
