At very high temperatures, the reaction products shift to hydrogen cyanide (HCN) and water instead: The same effect occurs in the presence of solid acid catalysts.

[8] Formamide is a constituent of cryoprotectant vitrification mixtures used for cryopreservation of tissues and organs.

Formamide, in its pure state, has been used as an alternative solvent for the electrostatic self-assembly of polymer nanofilms.

[9] Formamide is used to prepare primary amines directly from ketones via their N-formyl derivatives, using the Leuckart reaction.

[11] Formamide has been shown to convert to traces of guanine upon heating in the presence of ultraviolet light.

[12] Several prebiotic chemical reactions producing amino acid derivatives have been shown to take place in formamide.