Dicoordinate Au(I)–Ethylene Complexes as Hydroamination Catalysts

A series of gold(I)–ethylene  complexes containing a family of bulky phosphine ligands has been prepared. The use of these sterically congested ligands is crucial to stabilize the gold(I)–ethylene bond and prevent decomposition, boosting up their catalytic performance in the highly underexplored hydroamination of ethylene. The precatalysts bearing the most sterically demanding phosphines showed excellent results reaching full conversion to the hydroaminated products under low ethylene pressure (1 bar). Kinetic analysis together with density functional theory (DFT) calculations revealed that the assistance of a second molecule of the nucleophile as a proton shuttle is preferred even when using an extremely congested cavity-shaped Au(I) complex.