Rhodium complexes Noyori catalytic asymmetric hydrogenation

The first place in catalytic hydrogenation nowadays is taken by Rh or Ru complexes of BINAP. This ligand has axial chirality as the naphthalene rings cannot rotate past each other. These compounds were developed by Noyori, who with Knowles and Sharpless received the 2001 Nobel prize for their contributions to asymmetric synthesis. BINAP 20 is usually made from BINOL 19 and either 19 or 20 can be resolved. Rhodium complexes similar to those we have met include a molecule of cyclooctadiene and, as these are Rh(I) compounds, a counterion, often triflate 21. Both enantiomers of BINAP are available commercially.8... 

The present interest in asymmetric catalysis was demonstrated by awarding Nobel prizes to three winners W. S. Knowles (USA) for elaboration of rhodium complex catalysts effective in asymmetric synthesis of anti-Parkinson medicine, R. Noyori (Japan) for elaboration of a new catalytic system based on chiral ruthenium-phosphine complex catalysts that are very effective in hydrogenation reactions, and B. Sharpless (USA) for elaboration of epoxidation and other reactions under the action of chiral titanium complexes. 

The principles of directed and asynunetric reactions were first developed for hydrogenation, as discussed in Section 9.2. Asymmetric hydrosilation of ketones can now be carried out catalytically with rhodium complexes of diop (9.22). The widely used chiral ligand Et-duPHOS, made by Burk at du Pont, allows chiral amination of ketones via Eq. 14.50. Note how the use of the hydrazone generates an amide carbonyl to act as a ligand, as is known to favor high e.e. (see Section 9.2). Noyori s powerful BINAP ligand has been applied to a very large number of asymmetric reactions. 

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