This book explores the chemistry and application of molecules containing urea and amide bonds, fundamental to biological processes. Reviews the author's finding that sterically hindered ureas undergo solvolysis at room temperature under neutral conditions.

In this thesis, the author investigates the chemistry and application of molecules containing urea and amide bonds. These bonds are some of the strongest known and are fundamental to biological processes. The author describes his discovery that sterically hindered ureas undergo solvolysis at room temperature under neutral conditions. This is a remarkable finding, since ureas are inert under these conditions and a general rule of chemistry is that hindered substrates are less reactive. Remarkably, the author translates these results to the correspondingly sterically hindered amides. This...