Ruthenium(II) complexes with new tridentate ligands containing P, N, O donor atoms: highly efficient catalysts for transfer hydrogenation of ketones by propan-2-ol

Abstract

The complexes [RuCl2(PPh3)(L)] in which L is a tridentate ligand with P, N and O donor atoms are very efficient catalysts for the transfer hydrogenation of cyclic ketones and acetophenone (turnover ⩽ 118 800 h–1) in basic media; when L is optically active, no significant e.e. is observed.