Inorganic Chemistry, Vol.47, No.7, 2264-2266, 2008
Diruthenium(II,III) bis(tetramethyl-1,3-benzenedipropionate) as a novel catalyst for tert-butyl hydroperoxide oxygenation
The reaction of Ru-2(OAc)(4)Cl with 2.2 equiv of H(2)esp (esp = alpha,alpha,alpha',alpha'-tetramethyl-1,3-benzenedipropionate) resulted in a new compound, Ru-2(esp)(2)Cl (1), that is soluble in organic media. 1 is an active catalyst for the oxygenation of organic sulfides by tertbutyl hydroperoxide (TBHP) in both an acetonitrile solution or neat (solvent-free) conditions. Solvent-free reactions display the quantitative utility of TBHP and hence excellent chemical selectivity for sulfoxide formation.