“Silver Effect” in Gold(I) Catalysis: An Overlooked Important Factor

• Published in: Journal of the American Chemical Society Vol. 134; no. 21; pp. 9012 - 9019
• Main Authors: Wang, Dawei, Cai, Rong, Sharma, Sripadh, Jirak, James, Thummanapelli, Sravan K, Akhmedov, Novruz G, Zhang, Hui, Liu, Xingbo, Petersen, Jeffrey L, Shi, Xiaodong
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States American Chemical Society 30-05-2012
• ISSN: 0002-7863; 1520-5126
• DOI: 10.1021/ja303862z

Clear experimental evidence from X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and 31P NMR spectroscopy has been obtained for the first time to confirm that the combination of Ag+ cation with [L-Au]+ results in the formation of different complexes in solution. Re-evaluation of literature-reported gold-catalyzed reactions revealed a significant difference in the reactivities with and without silver. In extreme cases (more than “rare”), the conventional [L-Au]+ catalysts could not promote the reaction without the presence of silver. This investigation has therefore revealed a long-overlooked “silver effect” in gold catalysis and should lead to revision of the actual mechanism.