Unsupported nanoporous gold catalyst for highly selective hydrogenation of quinolines.

For the first time, the highly efficient and regioselective hydrogenation of quinoline derivatives to 1,2,3,4-tetrahydroquinolines using unsupported nanoporous gold (AuNPore) as a catalyst and organosilane with water as a hydrogen source is reported. The AuNPore catalyst can be readily recovered and reused without any loss of catalytic activity.