text: Alkanes undergo dehydrogenation at high temperatures. Typically this conversion is promoted heterogeneously because typically homogeneous catalysts do not survive the required temperatures (~200 °C) The corresponding conversion can be catalyzed homogeneously by pincer catalysts, which are sufficiently thermally robust.  Proof of concept was established in 1996 by Jensen and co-workers.  They reported that an iridium and rhodium pincer complex catalyze the dehydrogenation of cyclooctane with a turnover frequency of 12 min at 200 °C. They found that the dehydrogenation was performed at a rate two orders of magnitude greater than those previously reported.  The iridium pincer complex was also found to exhibit higher activity than the rhodium complex.  This rate difference may be due to the availability of the Ir(V) oxidation state which allows stronger Ir-C and Ir-H bonds.
  The homogeneously catalyzed process can be coupled to other reactions such as alkene metathesis.  Such tandem reactions have not been demonstrated with heterogeneous catalysts.