Amine and oxo compds

Sodium trihydridocyanoborate Tert. from sec. amines and oxo compds. Reductive N-methylation of amines... 

Alcohols from oxo compds. 20 eqs. NaBH4 added to a soln. of 5 eqs. ZrC in THF at room temp, under N2, a soln. of 4 eqs. acetophenone in the same solvent added, and the mixture stirred at room temp, for 5 h - 1-phenylethanol. Y 96%. ZrCl4 is inexpensive, easy to use, and does not affect ar. nitro compds. and bromides. F.e., also reduction of carboxylic acids, esters and halides to prim, alcohols, and amides, oximes, alkoximes, nitriles, and imines to amines, s. S. Itsuno et al.. Synthesis 1988, 995-6. 

A novel insoluble green complex of palladium(II) and N,N -salicylideneethylenedi-amine (salen) functions as a selective heterogeneous catalyst, notably for the reduction of alkynes in the presence of alkenes, and of the latter in the presence of certain functional groups. E ciVEthylene from acetylene derivs. A soln. of startg. acetylene deriv. in EtOH hydrogenated for 17 min in the presence of the palladium(ll) complex (prepared from potassium tetrachloropalladate, salen, and triethylamine) cis-product. Y 100%. Reduction of alkenes is considerably slower however, terminal olefins may be reduced in the presence of internal olefins esters, oxo compds., dibenzyl ether, and iodobenzene were unaffected. F.e., also ar. amines from nitro compds. s. J.M. Kerr et al.. Tetrahedron Letters 29, 5545-48 (1988). 

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