Bimetallic Ru–Ni and Rh–Ni nanocatalysts coated with a phase transfer agent efficiently cleave aryl ether C–O linkages in water in the presence of hydrogen. For dimeric substrates with weaker C–O linkages, i.e. α-O-4 and β-O-4 bonds, low loadings of the precious metal (Rh or Ru) in the nanocatalysts quantitatively afford monomers, whereas for the stronger 4-O-5 linkage higher amounts of the precious metal are required to achieve complete conversion. Under the optimized, relatively mild operating conditions, the C–O bonds in a range of substituted ether compounds are efficiently cleaved, and mechanistic insights into the reaction pathways are provided. This work paves the way to sustainable approaches for the hydrogenolysis of C–O bonds.

中文翻译：

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在水中运行的Rh–Ni和Ru–Ni纳米级催化剂有效裂解芳基醚C–O键†

涂有相转移剂的双金属Ru-Ni和Rh-Ni纳米催化剂可在存在氢的情况下有效裂解水中的芳基醚C-O键。对于具有弱C-O键的二聚底物，即α- ö -4和β- ö -4键，贵金属的负载量较低（铑或Ru）在纳米催化剂定量得到的单体，而对于更强4- Ò-5键合需要更多数量的贵金属才能实现完全转化。在优化的相对温和的操作条件下，可有效裂解一系列取代醚化合物中的C-O键，并提供了对反应途径的机械洞察力。这项工作为采用可持续的方法对C–O键进行氢解铺平了道路。