Desorption electrospray ionization (DESI) coupled to high-resolution Orbitrap mass spectrometry (MS) was used to study the reactivity of a (β-amino alcohol)(arene)RuCl transfer hydrogenation catalytic precursor in methanol (CH 3 OH). By placing ½ðp-cymeneÞ RuCl 2 2 on a surface and spraying a solution of β-amino alcohol in methanol, two unique transient intermediates having lifetimes in the submillisecond to millisecond range were detected. These intermediates were identified as Ru (II) and Ru (IV) complexes incorporating methyl formate (HCOOCH 3 ). The Ru (IV) intermediate is not observed when the DESI spray solution is sparged with Ar gas, indicating that O 2 dissolved in the solvent is necessary for oxidizing Ru (II) to Ru (IV). These proposed intermediates are supported by high-resolution and high mass accuracy measurements and by comparing experimental to calculated isotope profiles. Additionally, analyzing the bulk reaction mixture using gas chromatography-MS and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy confirms the formation of HCOOCH 3 . These results represent an example that species generated from the (β-amino alcohol)(arene)RuCl (II) catalytic precursor can selectively oxidize CH 3 OH to HCOOCH 3 . This observation leads us to propose a pathway that can compete with the hydrogen transfer catalytic cycle. Although bifunctional hydrogen transfer with Ru catalysts has been well-studied, the ability of DESI to intercept intermediates formed in the first few milliseconds of a chemical reaction allowed identification of previously unrecognized intermediates and reaction pathways in this catalytic system. organometallic catalysis | reaction intermediates | ruthenium | kinetics C atalytic transfer hydrogenation (CTH) is an efficient method for the enantioselective reduction of multiple bonds (e.g., C═O and C═NR) in chemical and pharmaceutical syntheses (1-4). Typically, a hydrogen donor such as isopropanol is used as a convenient reducing agent and is oxidized to its corresponding ketone (5). As a catalytic version of the classical MeerweinPondorf-Verley reduction/Oppenaur oxidation (6-10), CTH provides a mild method for both ketone reduction and alcohol oxidation. Previous studies show that methanol (CH 3 OH) can serve as a hydrogen donor for (arene)Ru complexes ligated by β-amino alcohols (11), but the nature of the oxidized products from CH 3 OH has not been previously characterized (12). Additionally, some Pd and Ru (13, 14) catalysts can oxidize CH 3 OH to methyl formate (HCOOCH 3 ), but selective oxidation to methyl formate has not been observed previously for a transfer hydrogenation catalysis. Fig. 1 shows the mechanism proposed by Kenney, Heck, Walgrove, and Wills (15) for CTH when Fig. 1, 1 is treated with β-amino alcohol ligands in the presence of a base. Ligation of the cymene dimer Fig. 1, 1 with ligand Fig. 1, 2 generates the Ru-Cl catalyst precursor Fig. 1, 3, which undergoes dehydrohalogenation to form the Ru-amide Fig. 1, 4. An outer-sphere concerted hydrogen transfer of α-C─H to Ru and ─O─H t...

Ruthenium transfer hydrogenation catalysts physisorbed onto edge-plane graphite electrodes are active electrocatalysts for the oxidation of alcohols. Electrooxidation of CH3OH (1.23 M) in a buffered aqueous solution at pH 11.5 with [(η(6)-p-cymene)(η(2)-N,O-(1R,2S)-cis-1-amino-2-indanol)]Ru(II)Cl (2) on edge-plane graphite exhibits an onset current at 560 mV vs NHE. Koutecky-Levich analysis at 750 mV reveals a four-electron oxidation of methanol with a rate of 1.35 M(-1) s(-1). Mechanistic investigations by (1)H NMR, cyclic voltammetry, and desorption electrospray ionization mass spectrometry indicate that the electroxidation of methanol to generate formate is mediated by surface-supported Ru-oxo complexes.

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Ketones P 0200Asymmetric Michael Addition of α-Nitro-Ketones Using Catalytic Peptides. -Peptides are developed for the asymmetric addition of nitrocarbonyl compounds to α,β-unsaturated ketones. Under the optimized conditions shown, an enantioselectivity up to 74% can be reached. -(LINTON*, B. R.; REUTERSHAN, M. H.; ADERMAN, C. M.; RICHARDSON, E. A.; BROWNELL, K. R.; ASHLEY, C. W.; EVANS, C. A.; MILLER, S.