Cooperative hydrogenation, styrene

Scheme 17 Catalytic cycle computed for the Ni-borane cooperative hydrogenation of styrene...

A remarkable example of the cooperation of different active sites in a polyfunctional catalyst is the one-step synthesis of 2-ethylhexanol, including a combined hydroformylation, aldol condensation, and hydrogenation process [17]. The catalyst in this case is a carbonyl-phosphine-rhodium complex immobilized on to polystyrene carrying amino groups close to the metal center. Another multistep catalytic process is the cyclooligomerization of butadiene combined with a subsequent hydroformylation or hydrogenation step [24, 25] using a styrene polymer on to which a rhodium-phosphine and a nickel-phosphine complex are anchored (cf Section 3.1.5). 

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