(22) Ruthenium Catalysts in Amide Synthesis

     Amide groups are present in many pharmaceutical compounds, and the ability to synthesize these basic building blocks in high-yielding and low intensity methods is vital. Mid/late transition metal complexes have been... [ view full abstract ]

     Amide groups are present in many pharmaceutical compounds, and the ability to synthesize these basic building blocks in high-yielding and low intensity methods is vital. Mid/late transition metal complexes have been shown to catalyze the formation of amides. This project centers around the synthesis and characterization of two new ruthenium complexes and their use in catalytic reactions to form amides from alcohols and amines. The ruthenium complexes were synthesized from [RuCl₂(p-cymene)]₂ and (4,4′-di-tertbutyl-2,2′bipyridine) to produce the catalyst [(p-cy)RuII(bpy)Cl]. After this, a second catalyst was made from [(p-cy)RuII(bpy)Cl] through the replacement of the chlorine atom with hydrogen. Both ruthenium complexes were tested as catalysts in the dehydrogenation of 1,4-butanediol and of N-butyl-5-amino-1-pentanol. The substrate concentration and the base (KOH, t-BuOK, and Na₂CO₃) used were varied to determine the efficacy of the compounds as catalysts.