Rapid, Regioconvergent, Solvent-Free Alkene Hydrosilylation with a Cobalt Catalyst

Alkene hydrosilylation is typically performed with Pt catalysts, but inexpensive base-metal catalysts would be preferred. We report a Co catalyst for anti-Markovnikov alkene hydrosilylation that can be used without added solvent at low temperatures with low loadings, and can be generated in situ from an air-stable precursor that is simple to synthesize from low-cost, commercially available materials. In addition, a mixture of Co catalysts performs a tandem catalytic alkene isomerization/hydrosilylation reaction that converts multiple isomers of hexene to the same terminal product. This regioconvergent reaction uses isomerization as a benefit rather than a hindrance.