The structure and physical properties of amines depend on their classification. For primary and secondary amines, H-bond donation distinguishes their properties and reactivity from tetiary amines.
The basicity of amines is determined by the reactivity of the lone pair on the nitrogen atom. Amines with low water solubility can react with acids to form water soluble ammonium salts.
As weak bases, amines are good nucleophiles that can react with many of the electrophilic functional groups studied so far including aldenhydes, ketones, acid chlorides, and alkyl halides.
The activating effects of amine groups during electrophilic aromatic substitution reactions may be mitigated using amides as protecting groups. The diazonium salts of aryl amines are useful reactive intermediates for the Sandmeyer reactions. The "azo" linkage (Ar-N=N-Ar') is important in the chemistry of dyes and pigments.
When a tertiary amine oxide bearing one or more beta hydrogens is heated, it is converted to an alkene. The reaction is known as Cope elimination or Cope reaction, not to be confused with Cope Rearrangement.
Sulfonamides are synthetic antimicrobial agents with a wide spectrum encompassing most gram-positive and many gram-negative organisms. These drugs were the first efficient treatment to be employed systematically for the prevention and cure of bacterial infections.