Methanol is a safe, economic and easy-to-handle hydrogen source. It has rarely been used in transfer hydrogenation reactions, however. We herein report that a cyclometalated rhodium complex, rhodacycle, catalyzes high...Methanol is a safe, economic and easy-to-handle hydrogen source. It has rarely been used in transfer hydrogenation reactions, however. We herein report that a cyclometalated rhodium complex, rhodacycle, catalyzes highly chemoselective hydrogenation of α,β-unsaturated ketones with methanol as the hydrogen source. A wide variety of chalcones, styryl methyl ketones and vinyl methyl ketones, including sterically demanding ones, were reduced to the saturated ketones in refluxing methanol in a short reaction time, with no need for inter gas protection, and no reduction of the carbonyl moieties was observed. The catalysis described provides a practically easy and operationally safe method for the reduction of olefinic bonds in α,β-unsaturated ketone compounds.展开更多
基金the Higher Committee for Education Development in Iraq for financial support(AHB)the Commonwealth Scholarships Commission in the UK for a Split-Site PhD Scholarship(RB)
文摘Methanol is a safe, economic and easy-to-handle hydrogen source. It has rarely been used in transfer hydrogenation reactions, however. We herein report that a cyclometalated rhodium complex, rhodacycle, catalyzes highly chemoselective hydrogenation of α,β-unsaturated ketones with methanol as the hydrogen source. A wide variety of chalcones, styryl methyl ketones and vinyl methyl ketones, including sterically demanding ones, were reduced to the saturated ketones in refluxing methanol in a short reaction time, with no need for inter gas protection, and no reduction of the carbonyl moieties was observed. The catalysis described provides a practically easy and operationally safe method for the reduction of olefinic bonds in α,β-unsaturated ketone compounds.
