Abstract
Outer-sphere radical hydrogenation of olefins proceeds via stepwise hydrogen atom transfer (HAT) from transition metal hydride species to the substrate. Typical catalysts exhibit M-H bonds that are either too weak to efficiently activate H2 or too strong to reduce unactivated olefins. This contribution evaluates an alternative approach, that starts from a square-planar cobalt(II) hydride complex. Photoactivation results in Co-H bond homolysis. The three-coordinate cobalt(I) photoproduct binds H2 to give a dihydrogen complex, which is a strong hydrogen atom donor, enabling the stepwise hydrogenation of both styrenes and unactivated aliphatic olefins with H2 via HAT.