New phosphoroamidate compounds: Synthesis, structural characterization and studies on ZnCl<inf>2</inf> assisted hydrolysis of the P-N bond

A variety of phosphorodiamidate compounds were synthesized from the corresponding phosphorodichloridate intermediates and phosphorus oxychloride. These were completely characterized using different spectroscopic methods and single crystal X-ray diffraction studies on one of them. Studies revealed that water in the presence of a mild Lewis acid like ZnCl2 was found to assist the hydrolysis of the P-N linkage. The proof of this concept was effectively realized through the hydrolysis of hexamethylphosphoramide. © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.