Recent advance on asymmetric hydrogenation of aromatic carbocyclic rings and thiophenes has been described with the chiral ruthenium catalyst. It represents a great breakthrough in the area of asymmetric hydrogenation as well as opens up a new pathway for the facile synthesis of valuable optically active carbocyclic rings and dihydro- and tetrahydrothiophenes.
Key words
asymmetric hydrogenation - naphthalenes - thiophenes - ruthenium - N-heterocyclic carbene