A Ferrocene-Based NH-Free Phosphine-Oxazoline Ligand for Iridium-Catalyzed Asymmetric Hydrogenation of Ketones

A new type of ferrocene-based phosphine-oxazoline ligand has been prepared over a few simple steps. An iridium complex of this ligand is air stable and exhibits excellent performance for the asymmetric hydrogenation of simple ketones (up to 98% yield, up to 99% ee, and 20 000 S/C). Exo-alpha,beta-unsaturated cyclic ketones could be regiospecifically hydrogenated to give chiral allylic alcohols with good results. This study indicates that P,N-ligands can also efficiently promote Ir-catalyzed asymmetric hydrogenation without NH-hydrogen-bonding assistance.