Crystal Structure of N-(4-Methyl-pyridin-2-yl)-3-oxo-butyramide

The title compound, N-(4-methyl-pyridin-2-yl)-3-oxo-butyramide, C10H12N2O2, has been synthesized by condensing 2-amino-4-methylpyridine with ethylacetoacetate via microwave irradiation, and is one of the intermediates for the synthesis of pyrido[1,2-a]pyrimidin-2-one. The structure of the compound was established by spectral analysis and X-ray diffraction studies. The compound crystallizes in the orthorhombic space group P212121 with unit-cell parameters: a = 6.187(3), b = 9.379(4), c = 17.210(8)Å, Z = 4. The crystal structure was solved by direct methods using single-crystal X-ray diffraction data, and refined to R = 0.0527 for 1739 observed reflections. The pyridine ring is planar with a maximum deviation of 0.002(3)Å observed for the atom C3′. The crystal packing is dominated by N-H…O, C-H…O, C-H…N hydrogen bonds and C-H-π interactions, which link the molecules into infinite chains.