What is a secondary amine?
A secondary amine has the general formula R2NH. It is like an ammonia molecule (NH3) in which two of the hydrogens have been replaced by alkyl groups. The mechanism The lone pair on the nitrogen in the primary amine attacks the + carbon exactly the same as the ammonia did. Bromine is lost as a bromide ion, and the immediate product is a salt called diethylammonium bromide – (CH3CH2)2NH2+ Br-. This is essentially ammonium bromide in which two of the hydrogens attached to the nitrogen have been replaced by ethyl groups. This then reacts with ammonia in a reversible reaction, exactly as we’ve seen before: The organic product is a secondary amine – diethylamine. It is secondary because there are two alkyl groups attached to the nitrogen atom.
