Remarkable effect of valence electrons in thiolato-bridged diruthenium complexes toward catalytic dimerization of α-methylstyrenes

Article abstract of DOI:10.1021/om200787s

The dicationic diruthenium complex 1c (Ru^III-Ru^III) catalytically promotes the dimerization of α-methylstyrenes into the corresponding acyclic dimers, while the use of the mixed-valence diruthenium complex (Ru^III-Ru^IV) generated from 1c and cinnamyl chloride as an active catalyst affords the corresponding indanes via cyclization of the acyclic dimers. The selectivity of the catalytic dimerization of α-methylstyrenes depends on the nature of electrophilicity due to valence electrons in the diruthenium cores between Ru^III-Ru^III and Ru^III-Ru^IV.