• Polar aprotic solvent for a wide variety of reactions, including nucleophilic substitutions, oxidations, reductions and organometallic reactions. Widely used with crown ethers for the generation of 'naked' anions from their salts; see, e.g. 18-Crown-6, A11249. Preferred solvent for RuO4 oxidations, due to its coordinating ability; see Ruthenium(III) chloride hydrate, 11043.
• Undergoes the Ritter reaction with alcohols or olefins in the presence of acid to give N-substituted acetamides. For benzylic alcohols, modified conditions employing boron trifluoride etherate give high yields: Synth. Commun., 24, 601 (1994). For an example, see 4-Methylbenzyl alcohol, A15315.
• For use in the mild conversion of amides to nitriles, see Benzamide, A10501.