Potential Safety Hazards Associated with Using N,N-Dimethylformamide in Chemical Reactions

N,N-Dimethylformamide (DMF) is frequently used as a solvent because of its unique physical properties that allow it to solubilize both organic and inorganic substances. It has also found broad applications as a catalyst for a variety of chemical transformations and as a donor for many functional groups in synthetic organic chemistry. However, DMF is incompatible with a wide variety of substances and has resulted in many incidents over the years. Analysis of literature information indicates that those incompatible substances can be categorized as acids, bases, halogenated reagents, oxidants, and reductants. This comprehensive review of the potential hazards of using DMF in chemical reactions will serve as an educational resource to promote awareness of such safety hazards in the broader chemistry community and encourage scientists to develop appropriate control strategies to mitigate the potential safety risks associated with the use of DMF in chemical reactions.