Chiral (η⁶-<i>p</i>-Cymene)ruthenium(II) Complexes Containing Monodentate Acylthiourea Ligands for Efficient Asymmetric Transfer Hydrogenation of Ketones

The new chiral ligands (R)-/(S)-N-((1-phenylethyl)carbamothioyl)benzamide (L1/L2), (R)-/(S)-N-((1-phenylethyl)carbamothioyl)thiophene-2-carboxamide (L3/L4), and (R)-/(S)-N-((1-phenylethyl)carbamothioyl)furan-2-carboxamide (L5/L6) were synthesized, characterized, and used to prepare novel chiral Ru(II) complexes. The chiral Ru(II) complexes 1–6 were obtained from reactions between the chiral ligands L1–L6 and [RuCl2(p-cymene)2]2. The complexes were characterized by analytical and spectroscopic (NMR, FT-IR, electronic) techniques. The solid-state structures of the ligands L1 and L3 and complexes 1, 4, and 6 were determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction methods. In all of the complexes, the ligand is bound to the Ru(II) center only via the sulfur donor atom. This monodentate coordination of the acylthiourea ligands was observed for the first time with ruthenium. The Ru(II) complexes 1–6 all act as efficient catalysts for the asymmetric transfer hydrogenation of aromatic ketones in the presence of 2-propanol and KOH to produce chiral alcohols. All of the catalysts showed excellent conversions of up to 99% and enantiomeric excesses of up to 99%.