Chiral Bronsted Acid-Catalyzed Metal-Free Asymmetric Direct Reductive Amination Using 1-Hydrosilatrane

The asymmetric direct reductive amination of prochiral ketones with aryl amines using 1-hydrosilatrane with a chiral Bronsted acid catalyst is reported. This is the first known example of chiral Bronsted acid-catalyzed asymmetric reductive amination using a silane as the hydride source. The reaction features a highly practical reducing reagent and proceeds efficiently at room temperature without a specialized reaction setup or equipment to exclude air or moisture. This method provides high conversion and enantiomeric excess up to 84% of the desired chiral secondary amines with minimal side products.