Aerobic oxidative coupling of alcohols and amines towards imine formation by a dicopper(I,I) catalyst.

A dicopper(I,I) complex [Cu 2 (L 1 ) (Cl) 2 ] ( 1 ), bearing a Cu 2 Cl 2 core spanned by a naphthyridine–diimine ligand is synthesized by the treatment of CuCl with 2,7–bis( N –mesitylmethylimino)–1,8–naphthyridine (L 1 ). The catalytic efficacy of 1 is assessed for aerobic oxidative synthesis of imines from alcohols and amines. The title complex is found to be an excellent catalyst for a wide variety of alcohols and amines. Kinetic experiments revealed the involvement of both copper ions in the aerobic oxidation process. The general utility of naphthyridine based ligands to favour a possible bimetallic pathway for a catalytic reaction is demonstrated here. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]