Lithium bis(trimethylsilyl)amide

Lithium bis(trimethylsilyl)amide is a lithiated organosilicon compound. Its chemical formula is LiN(SiMe3)2. It is commonly abbreviated as LiHMDS which means lithium hexamethyldisilazide. It is mainly used as a strong non-nucleophilic base and as a ligand.

 Preparation 
It can be made by the deprotonation of bis(trimethylsilyl)amine with n-butyllithium. Once its made, the compound can be purified by sublimation or distillation.

 Uses 
It is often used in organic chemistry as a strong non-nucleophilic base. It can be used to make many organolithium compounds, including acetylides or lithium enolates.

 References 

Category:Lithium compounds