Ruthenium-catalysed olefin cross-metathesis can be used to synthesise structurally diverse acyclic phosphines protected as their borane complexes. Homodimerisations have been investigated and proved successful only for the allyl-substituted borane-protected phosphines. In the presence of various olefinic partners, allyl-substituted P templates reacted in cross-couplings to give predominantly the E products but traces of the Z ...
