Palladium catalysis using dendrimers: molecular catalysts versus nanoparticles

Dendritic Pd catalysts, dendrimer-stabilized Pd nanoparticle (PdNP) catalysts, and their comparison and combined use for carbon-carbon coupling reactions are discussed with emphasis on the research carried out in the author's laboratory during the last decade. Multinuclear star-shaped catalysts rather than dendritic catalysts can reach the efficiency of the best monometallic catalysts, whereas PdNPs stabilized by dendrimers can react with turnover numbers close to 10(6) and bring useful mechanistic indications. In both areas, leaching issues are examined. Finally, results of the literature in asymmetric Pd catalysis by chiral dendrimers and Pd nanoparticles stabilized by chiral ligands are also reviewed, revealing the importance of the dendritic and molecular ligand design and the role of leaching Pd atoms. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.