Acceptor less Dehydrogenation of C-C Single Bonds Adjacent to Functional Groups by Metal-Ligand Cooperation

Unprecedented direct acceptorless dehydrogenation of C-C single bonds adjacent to functional groups to form alpha,beta-unsaturated compounds has been accomplished by using a new class of group 9 metal complexes. Metal-ligand cooperation operated by the hydroxycyclopentadienyl ligand was proposed to play a major role in the catalytic transformation.