Hydrogenation of nitroarenes with palladium nanoparticles stabilized by alkyne derivatives in homogeneous phase

Abstract

Palladium nanoparticles stabilized by alkyne derivatives catalyzed the hydrogenation of nitroarenes to the aryl amines in homogeneous phase. The reaction of nitrobenzene proceeded smoothly with a substrate-to-palladium molar ratio (S/Pd) of 51,000 under 8atm of H2. The reaction under 1atm of H2 with an S/Pd of 1030 was completed in 4h. A series of substituted nitroarenes, including 4-acetyl- and 4-formylnitrobenzenes, were converted to the aryl amines with high chemoselectivity.