[Zwartekoffie]

Hello everyone, before I ask my question I will state that I am not very well versed in chemistry beyond a high school level. I'm interested in the compound n-acetyl-cysteine amide, but it's not obtainable on the internet. I came across a comment describing a synthesis from NAC and ammonia, but it seems like it would be simplistic, so I want to run it by you.

"It's pretty easy to make. It's just as simple as adding an equimolar amount of ammonia to NAC, slowly evap the water with low heat to get the ammonium salt of NAC, then heat that until it starts to emit water and form NACA. It won't be 100% efficient, since you'll get some byproducts of cysteine, cysteine amide, and acetamide, but they're harmless and can be separated by recrystallization or A/B solvent extraction."

Now I don't care about optimal purity, but I do care about potentially unsafe byproducts. Would this synthesis lead to a worthwhile amount of NACA being produced without dangerous byproducts?

[AWK]

You found a student description of acetamide synthesis somewhere (or someone you cited) and you think any amide can be made this way. If 25 mg of NACA costs ~ $ 500, you can clearly see that this is not the correct synthesis method.
The synthesis of this compound should be performed by an experienced chemist in a well-equipped laboratory allowing for the purification of the product and possible identification of unremoved impurities.
I don't know if NACA is already used as a medicine, but it is definitely being studied in this respect.

I advise you to read the Forum rules carefully.
https://www.chemicalforums.com/index.php?topic=65859.0

[Zwartekoffie]

I figured as much, it sounded ridiculously easy. I have no experience in synthesizing anything, but this method seemed about as easy as making brownies. I'll put the idea to rest. Thanks for responding and sorry for breaching forum rules.

[GabrielTojo]

If you are looking for a chemical on the Internet, you are not working in a serious research laboratory. I mean, you shouldn't try any reaction.

There are manufacturers who sell N-acetylcysteine, but they only sell it to accredited university or industry laboratories.