Cyclometalated Iridium Complex-Catalyzed -Alkylation of Amines with Alcohols via Borrowing Hydrogen in Aqueous Media.

This paper develops a methodology for cyclometalated iridium complex-catalyzed -alkylation of amines with alcohols via borrowing hydrogen in the aqueous phase. The cyclometalated iridium catalyst-mediated -alkylation of amines with alcohols displays high activity (S/C up to 10,000 and yield up to 96%) and ratio of amine/imine (up to >99:1) in a broad range of substrates (up to 46 examples) using water as the green and eco-friendly solvent. Most importantly, this transformation is simple, efficient, and can be performed at a gram scale, showcasing its potential for industrially synthesizing -alkylamine compounds.