Asymmetric hydrogenation of minimally functionalised terminal olefins: an alternative sustainable and direct strategy for preparing enantioenriched hydrocarbons.

This account discusses the progress made in the asymmetric hydrogenation of minimally functionalised terminal olefins as a new, alternative, sustainable and direct strategy for preparing enantioenriched hydrocarbons. It discusses the latest development in catalyst design, from the initial discovery of lanthanide catalytic precursors, through the use of transition-metal/diphosphine-iminophosphorane precursors, to the successful iridium/P,N catalytic systems.