Journal of Molecular Catalysis A-Chemical, Vol.217, No.1-2, 21-26, 2004
The role of acid in accelerating the asymmetric reduction of methyl acetoacetate with BINAP-chloro-(p-cymene)-Ru chloride complex
The effect of addition of organic and inorganic catalytic amounts of acid on the asymmetric hydrogenation of methyl acetoacetate with Ru-BINAP complex was studied. An increased activity was observed which was found to be dependent on the strength and the amount of acid added up to saturation. It was proposed that the added acids protonate the carbonyl bond and hence facilitate the hydride transfer. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.