Facile synthesis of N-acetylglycine from chitin-derived N-acetylmonoethanolamine

The effective conversion of renewable chitin and its derivatives to organonitrogen chemicals is of significance. N -acetylmonoethanolamine (NMEA) is a compound that can be produced from N -acetylglucosamine (NAG, the monomer of chitin) via successive retro-aldol and hydrogenation reactions. Here we report the aerobic oxidation of NMEA to N -acetylglycine in O 2 using cheap Fe(NO 3 ) 3 ⋅9H 2 O, TEMPO, and KCl. The effects of catalysts, additives, and reaction conditions on the N -acetylglycine synthesis were investigated. Under optimized conditions, a 62.1% yield of N -acetylglycine with almost full conversion was obtained.