Triphenylphosphine is used in the synthesis of organic compounds due to its nucleophilicity and its reducing character. It is involved in the synthesis of biaryl compounds, phosphonium salts and other phosphorus compounds. As a reducing agent, it is used to prepare aromatic amines from the corresponding aromatic N-oxides. The anionic phosphine is usually isolated as the trisodium salt which reacts with rhodium to form a complex that finds use in industrial hydroformylation reactions. It is also used to prepare Wilkinson's catalyst, RhCl(PPh₃)₃ useful to catalyze the hydrogenation of alkenes and tetrakis(triphenylphosphine)palladium(0) that is widely used to catalyze C-C coupling reactions in organic synthesis.

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