Recent progress towards ionic hydrogenation: Lewis acid catalyzed hydrogenation using organosilanes as donors of hydride ions

Abstract

Development of the methodology for hydrogenation is of great significance in organic chemistry. Ionic hydrogenation is attractive for its chemoselectivity and unique feature of product structures which is a result of the combination of reduction, cyclization and intermolecular addition. It is mostly suitable for the reduction of carbonyl groups, unsaturated hydrocarbons, imines and reductive amination of carbonyl compounds. Recent advances in ionic hydrogenation as well as its fundamental mechanism are summarized and discussed.