Cationic cyclopalladated ferrocenylpyrimidine complex as an efficient catalyst for the synthesis of substituted biarylmethanol by the Suzuki reaction in water

A new cationic cyclopalladated ferrocenylpyrimidine 2 has been synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, IR, 1H and C13 NMR. Additionally, its detailed structure has been determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction and intermolecular C–H⋯O hydrogen bonds were found in the its crystal. 2 was successfully used in Suzuki reaction of aryl bromides or chlorides excluding water-soluble group with 4-(hydroxymethyl)phenylboronic acid for the synthesis of substituted biarylmethanol in water. Complex 2 was found to be very efficient for these reactions. Typically, using 0.5–1 mol% of catalyst in the presence of 3 equivalents of K3PO4·3H2O as base in water at 100 °C provided coupling products in good yields.