Ahmed H. Aboo, R. Begum, Liangliang Zhao
Nov 1, 2019
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Influential Citations
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Journal
Chinese Journal of Catalysis
Abstract
ABSTRACT 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.