Clean and selective catalytic C-H alkylation of alkenes with environmental friendly alcohols

Bearing the alkylation of alkene substrates using alcohol as solvent, catalysed by the cationic Ru-based catalyst [(C6H6)(PCy3)(CO)RuH]+, DFT calculations have been carried out to get mechanistic insights of such an environmental friendly reaction. Hard experimental conditions of Yi and coworkers [Science 2011, 333, 1613] allow the formation of a CC bond between indene and ethanol. The predicted mechanism suggests a cationic Ru-alkenyl species...