A Highly Active PN3 Manganese Pincer Complex Performing N-Alkylation of Amines under Mild Conditions

A highly active Mn(I) catalyst based on a nonsymmetric PN3-ligand scaffold for the N-alkylation of amines with alcohols utilizing the borrowing hydrogen methodology is reported. A broad range of anilines and the more challenging aliphatic amines were alkylated with primary and secondary alcohols. Moreover, the combination of low catalyst loadings and mild reaction conditions provides high efficiency for this atom-economic transformation.