Electrochemical Hofmann Rearrangement to Hydrazides

We present the first electrochemical Hofmann rearrangement for the sustainable and safe synthesis of N,N-disubstituted hydrazides from readily available ureas. The process employs a simple undivided-cell set-up with LiCl as a low-cost, environmentally benign supporting electrolyte and operates efficiently at high current density up to 120 mA/cm2. This strategy accommodates a broad substrate scope with 36 examples and yields up to 84%. Additionally, the method was found to be both applicable and scalable for pharmaceutically relevant compounds.