Complex of 2-(methylthio)aniline with palladium(II) as an efficient catalyst for Suzuki-Miyaura C-C coupling in eco-friendly water.

2-(Methylthio)aniline (L1), a bidentate (S,N) ligand synthesized by the reaction of o-aminothiophenol with methyl iodide, on reacting with Na2PdCl4 in acetone and water gives a complex [PdL1Cl2] (1). Single crystal X-ray diffraction studies have revealed that the geometry of palladium in 1 is nearly square-planar and the ligand L1 is bound to the palladium through S and N in a bidentate coordination mode forming a five membered chelate ring. This complex functions as a thermally and air stable catalyst of high efficiency for Suzuki-Miyaura CC coupling reactions in water. It catalyzes CC coupling between various aryl bromides and phenylboronic acid under mild reaction conditions in water. TON value up to 93,000 has been obtained.