Titanocene-Catalyzed Asymmetric Ketone Hydrosilylation:  The Effect of Catalyst Activation Protocol and Additives on the Reaction Rate and Enantioselectivity

Abstract

The efficient asymmetric hydrosilylation of ketones with a chiral titanocene catalyst has been realized. In this procedure, ( R,R )-ethylenebis(tetrahydroindenyl) titanium difluoride ( 1 ) was used as the precatalyst, and alcohol additives were employed. Aromatic and α,β-unsaturated ketones were reduced to the corresponding alcohols with a high level of enantioselectivity.