Reactions of electrosprayed rhodium phosphine complexes in the gas phase: modeling homogeneous catalytic hydrogenation

摘要

Electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry is used to prepare low coordinate rhodium phosphine complexes related to the reactive intermediates in asymmetric homogeneous catalytic hydrogenation in solution. Each elementary step, or its functional equivalent, in at least one mechanism for the solution-phase reaction can be observed in the gas phase, although functional equivalency and structurally similarity do not necessarily go hand-in-hand. Additional restrictions on the catalyst structure for a gas phase hydrogenation catalyst are also found and evaluated.