One-pot oxidation of sulfides to sulfones by reusable heterogeneous ruthenium catalyst in the presence of molecular oxygen

A reusable solid catalyst, MnFe_1.8Cu_0.15Ru_0.05O₄, has been developed as an effective catalyst for the aerobic oxidation of sulfides and sulfoxides to sulfones. The ruthenium modified spinel catalyst is the first example reported for such reaction under mild condition with molecular oxygen as the only oxidant. The oxidation reaction proceeded via an electrophilic attack of the oxygen atom of the catalyst on the electron-rich sulfur atom of the substrate.     

Epimerization reaction of a substituted vinylcyclopropane catalyzed by ruthenium carbenes: mechanistic analysis

A novel ruthenium carbene-catalyzed epimerization of vinylcyclopropanes is reported. The reaction rate strongly depends on the presence of ruthenium ligands in solution. When the first-generation Grubbs catalyst is employed, a 5.3:1 equilibrium ratio of epimers is established quickly, but when a first-generation Hoveyda catalyst is employed, epimerization is observed only if an additional phosphine or nitrogen ligand is added. NMR and kinetic studies suggest that the isomerization reaction occurs through the intermediacy of a ruthenacyclopentene. The observation suggests that cyclopropylmethylidene ruthenium carbenes of synthetic utility may be accessible via ruthenacyclopentenes obtained via other routes.     

Ruthenium-catalyzed Heck-type olefination and Suzuki coupling reactions: studies on the nature of catalytic species

Ruthenium-catalyzed Heck olefination and Suzuki cross coupling reactions have been developed. When starting with a ruthenium complex [RuCl(2)(p-cymene)](2) as a homogeneous catalyst precursor, induction periods were observed and ruthenium colloids of zero oxidation state were generated under catalytic conditions. Isolated ruthenium colloids carried out the olefination, implying that active catalytic species are ruthenium nanoclusters. To support this hypothesis, ruthenium nanoparticles stabilized with dodecylamine were independently prepared via a hydride reduction procedure, and their catalytic activity was subsequently examined. Olefination of iodobenzene with ethyl acrylate was efficiently catalyzed by the ruthenium nanoparticles under the same conditions, which could be also reused for the next runs. In poisoning experiments, the conversion of the olefination was completely inhibited in the presence of mercury, thus supporting our assumption on the nature of catalytic species. No residual ruthenium was detected from the filtrate at the end of the reaction. On the basis of the postulation, a heterogeneous catalyst system of ruthenium supported on alumina was consequently developed for the Heck olefination and Suzuki cross coupling reactions for the first time. It turned out that substrate scope and selectivity were significantly improved with the external ligand-free catalyst even under milder reaction conditions when compared to results with the homogeneous precatalyst. It was also observed that the immobilized ruthenium catalyst was recovered and reused up to several runs with consistent efficiency. Especially in the Suzuki couplings, the reactions could be efficiently carried out with as low as 1 mol % of the supported catalyst over a wide range of substrates and were scaled up to a few grams without any practical problems, giving coupled products with high purity by a simple workup procedure.     

Catalytic partial oxidation of methane to synthesis gas over a ruthenium catalyst: the role of the oxidation state

The catalytic partial oxidation of methane to synthesis gas over ruthenium catalysts was investigated by thermogravimetry coupled with infrared spectroscopy (TGA-FTIR) and in situ X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS). It was found that the oxidation state of the catalyst influences the product formation. On oxidized ruthenium sites, carbon dioxide was formed. The reduced catalyst yielded carbon monoxide as a product. The influence of the temperature was also investigated. At temperatures below the ignition point of the reaction, the catalyst was in an oxidized state. At temperatures above the ignition point, the catalyst was reduced. This was also confirmed by the in situ XAS spectroscopy. The results indicate that both a direct reaction mechanism as well as a combustion-reforming mechanism can occur. The importance of knowing the oxidation state of the surface is discussed and a method to determine it under reaction conditions is presented.     

Quantitative structural assessment of heterogeneous catalysts by electron tomography

We present transmission electron microscope (TEM) tomography investigations of ruthenium-based fuel cell catalyst materials as employed in direct methanol fuel cells (DMFC). The digital three-dimensional representation of the samples not only enables detailed studies on number, size, and shape but also on the local orientation of the ruthenium particles to their support and their freely accessible surface area. The shape analysis shows the ruthenium particles deviate significantly from spherical symmetry which increases their surface to volume ratio. The morphological studies help to understand the structure formation mechanisms during the fabrication as well as the high effectiveness of these catalysts in the oxygen reduction reaction at the cathode side of fuel cells.     

Selective synthesis of acetic acid from hydrogen and carbon monoxide by homogeneous bimetallic catalysts

Alcohols which are the main products of the reaction of hydrogen and carbon monoxide in onium halide promoted ruthenium systems, are changed to acetic acid with the addition of cobalt carbonyl as the second catalyst component. Among Group VIa-VIIIa transition metal complexes, cobalt carbonyl is the only compound which promoted acetic acid formation when combined with ruthenium carbonyl under the conditions studied. The selectivity to acetic acid varied appreciably with the combinations of solvents and promoters, and exceeded 80% with optimal catalyst composition. The effects of solvents and promoters were investigated together with ¹³C tracer experiments from which the roles of halide anions of onium salts were determined.     

Ruthenium-catalyzed decarboxylative allylation of nonstabilized ketone enolates

[reaction: see text] Bipyridyl(pentamethylcyclopentadienyl)ruthenium chloride is an efficient catalyst for the formal [3,3] rearrangement of allyl beta-ketoesters. The mechanism of the transformation involves formation of pi-allyl ruthenium intermediates, which are selectively attacked at the more substituted allyl terminus by freely diffusing enolates. Decarboxylation of beta-ketocarboxylates allows generation of enolates under extremely mild conditions.     

Hydrogen liberation from the hydrolytic dehydrogenation of dimethylamine-borane at room temperature by using a novel ruthenium nanocatalyst

Herein we report the discovery of an in situ generated, highly active nanocatalyst for the room temperature dehydrogenation of dimethylamine-borane in water. The new catalyst system consisting of ruthenium(0) nanoparticles stabilized by the hydrogenphosphate anion can readily and reproducibly be formed under in situ conditions from the dimethylamine-borane reduction of a ruthenium(III) precatalyst in tetrabutylammonium dihydrogenphosphate solution at 25 ± 0.1 °C. These new water dispersible ruthenium nanoparticles were characterized by using a combination of advanced analytical techniques. The results show the formation of well-dispersed ruthenium(0) nanoparticles of 2.9 ± 0.9 nm size stabilized by the hydrogenphosphate anion in aqueous solution. The resulting ruthenium(0) nanoparticles act as a highly active catalyst in the generation of 3.0 equiv. of H(2) from the hydrolytic dehydrogenation of dimethylamine-borane with an initial TOF value of 500 h(-1) at 25 ± 0.1 °C. Moreover, they provide exceptional catalytic lifetime (TTO = 11,600) in the same reaction at room temperature. The work reported here also includes the following results; (i) monitoring the formation kinetics of the in situ generated ruthenium nanoparticles, by using the hydrogen generation from the hydrolytic dehydrogenation of dimethylamine-borane as a catalytic reporter reaction, shows that sigmoidal kinetics of catalyst formation and concomitant dehydrogenation fits well to the two-step, slow nucleation and then autocatalytic surface growth mechanism, A → B (rate constant k(1)) and A + B → 2B (rate constant k(2)), in which A is RuCl(3)·3H(2)O and B is the growing, catalytically active Ru(0)(n) nanoclusters. (ii) Hg(0) poisoning coupled with activity measurements after solution infiltration demonstrates that the in situ generated ruthenium(0) nanoparticles act as a kinetically competent heterogeneous catalyst in hydrogen generation from the hydrolytic dehydrogenation of dimethylamine-borane. (iii) A compilation of kinetic data depending on the temperature and catalyst concentration is used to determine the dependency of reaction rate on catalyst concentration and the activation energy of the reaction, respectively.     

The ruthenium-catalyzed reduction and reductive N-alkylation of secondary amides with hydrosilanes: practical synthesis of secondary and tertiary amines by judicious choice of hydrosilanes

A triruthenium cluster, (mu3,eta2,eta3,eta5-acenaphthylene)Ru3(CO)7 (1) catalyzes the reaction of secondary amides with hydrosilanes, yielding a mixture of secondary amines, tertiary amines, and silyl enamines. Production of secondary amines with complete selectivity is achieved by the use of higher concentration of the catalyst (3 mol %) and the use of bifunctional hydrosilanes such as 1,1,3,3-tetramethyldisiloxane. Acidic workup of the reaction mixture affords the corresponding ammonium salts, which can be treated with a base, providing a facile method for isolation of secondary amines with high purity. In contrast, tertiary amines are formed with high selectivity by using lower concentration of the catalyst (1 mol %) and polymeric hydrosiloxanes (PMHS) as reducing agent. Reduction with PMHS encapsulates the ruthenium catalyst and organic byproducts to the insoluble silicone resin. The two reaction manifolds are applicable to various secondary amides and are practical in that the procedures provide the desired secondary or tertiary amine as a single product. The product contaminated with only minimal amounts of ruthenium and silicon residues. On the basis of the products and observed side products as well as NMR studies a mechanistic scenario for the reaction is also described.     

Ruthenium-catalyzed hydrative cyclization of 1,5-enynes

A ruthenium-catalyzed hydrative cyclization of enynes has been developed. The reaction converts a range of 1,5-enynes bearing terminal alkyne and Michael acceptor moieties into cyclopentanone derivatives. From extensive catalyst screening experiments, a trinuclear ruthenium complex, [Ru3(dppm)3Cl5]PF6, has been identified to be an effective catalyst in mediating the 1,1-difunctionalization of alkynes. It is proposed that this novel umpolung reaction proceeds through the formation of a ruthenium vinylidene, anti-Markovnikov hydration, and intramolecular Michael addition of an acyl ruthenium to the alkene.     

Single Turnover at Molecular Polymerization Catalysts Reveals Spatiotemporally Resolved Reactions

Multiple active individual molecular ruthenium catalysts have been pinpointed within growing polynorbornene, thereby revealing information on the reaction dynamics and location that is unavailable through traditional ensemble experiments. This is the first single‐turnover imaging of a molecular catalyst by fluorescence microscopy and allows detection of individual monomer reactions at an industrially important molecular ruthenium ring‐opening metathesis polymerization (ROMP) catalyst under synthetically relevant conditions (e.g. unmodified industrial catalyst, ambient pressure, condensed phase, ca. 0.03 m monomer). These results further establish the key fundamentals of this imaging technique for characterizing the reactivity and location of active molecular catalysts even when they are the minor components.     

Nonmetathetic activity of ruthenium alkylidene complexes: 1,4-hydrovinylative cyclization of multiynes with ethylene

An efficient 1,4-hydrovinylative cyclization reaction of triynes and tetraynes catalyzed by ruthenium alkylidene complexes under ethylene is described. The regioselectivity of vinyl group incorporation can be controlled by the nature of the substituent on the alkyne, and the Grubbs second-generation catalyst is the most effective among typical ruthenium alkylidene complexes.     

Mechanistic Studies of Ruthenium-Catalyzed Anti-Markovnikov Hydroamination of Vinylarenes: Intermediates and Evidence for Catalysis through pi-Arene Complexes

Studies are described that reveal the steps of the anti-Markovnikov hydroamination of vinylarenes with alkylamines catalyzed by Ru(COD)(2-methylallyl)2, bis(diphenylphosphino)pentane, and TfOH. Treatment of the catalyst components with an excess of styrene under the catalytic reaction conditions afforded a new ruthenium eta6-styrene complex with an ancillary tridentate PCP ligand. This ruthenium complex was active as catalyst for the hydroamination of styrene with morpholine to give the anti-Markovnikov adduct as a single regioisomer in high yield. Studies of the reactivity of the eta6-styrene complex revealed two reactions that comprise a catalytic cycle for anti-Markovnikov hydroamination: nucleophilic addition of morpholine to the ruthenium eta6-styrene complex to afford a ruthenium eta6-(2-aminoethyl)benzene complex and arene exchange of the ruthenium eta6-(2-aminoethyl)benzene complex with styrene to regenerate the ruthenium eta6-styrene complex. The addition of morpholine and the exchange of arene occurred with comparable rates. These results strongly suggest that the ruthenium-catalyzed anti-Markovnikov addition of alkylamines to vinylarenes occurs by a new reaction mechanism for hydroamination involving nucleophilic attack on the eta6-vinylarene complex and exchange of the aminoalkylarene complex product with free vinylarene. This mechanism is a rare example of catalytic chemistry through pi-arene complexes. These mechanistic data were used to select derivatives of the DPPP ligand that improve the rates of the catalytic process.     

Hydrogen transfer type oxidation of alcohols by rhodium and ruthenium catalyst under microwave irradiation

Secondary alcohols were converted into the corresponding ketones by methyl acrylate and rhodium catalyst efficiently under microwave irradiation. Treatment of primary alcohols with the same condition resulted in the recovery of the starting materials. Primary alcohols were converted into aldehydes by hydrogen transfer reaction using methyl vinyl ketone and ruthenium catalyst under microwave irradiation.     

氯化钌氨作前驱体制备高活性的氨合成催化剂

以氯化钌和水合肼反应制备了新型的氧化钌氨前驱体Ru(NH3)5Cl3.透射电镜和CO化学吸附结果表明,由Ru(NH3)5Cl3前驱体制备的活性炭(AC)负载的RuN/AC催化剂中.钌纳米粒子分散度高,粒径分布均匀.与以氯化钌为前驱体制备的Ru/AC催化剂相比,RuN/AC催化剂具有更高的氨合成活性,在10 MPa和10 000 h-1条件下活性增幅超过10%.     

Highly efficient epoxidation of cyclic alkenes catalyzed by ruthenium complex

The epoxidation of cyclic alkenes with molecular oxygen was efficiently completed in excellent epoxide yield using a novel ruthenium complex as catalyst under mild reaction conditions.     

蜂窝陶瓷整体反应器内苯选择加氢制环己烯

 研究了Ru/ZrO2蜂窝陶瓷整体催化剂对苯液相选择加氢制环己烯反应的催化性能,考察了催化剂载体、活性组分含量、预处理条件、反应温度、反应压力、水和硫酸锌水溶液等对该反应的影响. 结果表明,整体催化剂不经预还原就可以直接进行苯液相加氢反应; 反应物中不加水或其它无机添加剂时环己烯的选择性为0,水或硫酸锌水溶液的加入大大降低了反应活性,但环己烯的选择性显著提高,约达到20%; 反应物中水和苯有最优配比,以保证最佳的环己烯选择性和收率; 反应温度在413～443 K,反应压力为3～4 MPa,硫酸锌浓度为0.1 mol/L时,反应结果较好.     

Pybox monolithic miniflow reactors for continuous asymmetric cyclopropanation reaction under conventional and supercritical conditions

Supported catalysts having pybox chiral moieties were prepared as macroporous monolithic miniflow systems. These catalysts are based on styrene-divinylbenzene polymeric backbones having different compositions and pybox chiral moieties. Their corresponding ruthenium complexes were tested for the continuous flow cyclopropanation reaction between styrene and ethyldiazoacetate (EDA) under conventional conditions and in supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO2). Ru-Pybox monolithic miniflow reactors not only provided a highly efficient and robust heterogeneous chiral catalyst but also allowed us to develop more environmental reaction conditions without sacrificing the global efficiency of the process.     

Intermolecular [2+2+1] Carbonylative Cycloaddition of Aldehydes with Alkynes,and Subsequent Oxidation to γ‐Hydroxybutenolides by a Supported Ruthenium Catalyst

Intermolecular [2+2+1] carbonylative cycloaddition of aldehydes with alkynes and subsequent oxidation to γ‐hydroxybutenolides is achieved using a supported ruthenium catalyst. A ceria‐supported ruthenium catalyst promotes the reaction efficiently, even with an ambient pressure of CO or without external CO, thus giving the corresponding γ‐hydroxybutenolide derivatives in good to high yields. Moreover this catalyst can be reused with no loss of activity.     

Intermolecular [2+2+1] Carbonylative Cycloaddition of Aldehydes with Alkynes,and Subsequent Oxidation to γ‐Hydroxybutenolides by a Supported Ruthenium Catalyst

Intermolecular [2+2+1] carbonylative cycloaddition of aldehydes with alkynes and subsequent oxidation to γ‐hydroxybutenolides is achieved using a supported ruthenium catalyst. A ceria‐supported ruthenium catalyst promotes the reaction efficiently, even with an ambient pressure of CO or without external CO, thus giving the corresponding γ‐hydroxybutenolide derivatives in good to high yields. Moreover this catalyst can be reused with no loss of activity.