Competitive formation of N-diazeniumdiolates and N-nitrosamines via anaerobic reactions of polyamines with nitric oxide.

Reactions of amines with nitric oxide (NO) at high pressures form diverse NO donor species, highly dependent on the precursor structure. While monoamine precursors favor the formation of N-diazeniumdiolates in high yield, polyamines exhibit competitive formation of N-nitrosamines and diazeniumdiolates, resulting in mixed products containing significant percentages of undesired N-nitroso compounds.