Selective reduction of ketones using water as a hydrogen source under high hydrostatic pressure.

A selective reduction of a broad variety of ketones is described. The method is based on the combination of a Ni-Al alloy and high hydrostatic pressure (HHP, 2.8 kbar) in an aqueous medium. The reaction of the Ni-Al alloy with water provides in situ hydrogen generation and the high pressure ensures that the H(2) formed remains in the solution, thus the C=O reduction readily occurs. The application of the HHP resulted in selective formation of the desired products and the common problem of non-selective overhydrogenation could be avoided. In most cases the reductions resulted in high yields and excellent selectivities without the use of any base.