A Highly Efficient Base-Metal Catalyst: Chemoselective Reduction of Imines to Amines Using An Abnormal-NHC–Fe(0) Complex

A base-metal, Fe(0)-catalyzed hydrosilylation of imines to obtain amines is reported here which outperforms its noble-metal congeners with the highest TON of 17000. The catalyst, (aNHC)­Fe­(CO)4, works under very mild conditions, with extremely low catalyst loading (down to 0.005 mol %), and exhibits excellent chemoselectivity. The facile nature of the imine reduction under mild conditions has been further demonstrated by reducing imines towards expensive commercial amines and biologically important N-alkylated sugars, which are difficult to achieve otherwise. A mechanistic pathway and the source of chemoselectivity for imine hydrosilylation have been proposed on the basis of the well-defined catalyst and isolable intermediates along the catalytic cycle.