| Abstract: | Ceria‐supported ruthenium catalysts (Ru/CeO2) were found to be quite effective for the addition of various carboxylic acids to terminal alkynes, which gave the corresponding enol esters in moderate to high yields. The major products of the reaction were E‐isomers of anti‐Markovnikov adducts. Among the ceria‐supported ruthenium catalysts examined, those prepared using ruthenium precursors with chloride ligands showed high activities. The zirconia‐supported ruthenium catalyst (Ru/ZrO2) showed activity comparable to that of the ceria‐supported catalyst. These catalysts were recyclable without a significant loss of activity, and the leaching of ruthenium species into the liquid phase was negligible after cooling the reaction mixture, which indicates marked superiority of the present solid oxide catalysts to conventional homogeneous catalysts. |
