Exploring ethylene insertion reaction mechanism in nickel complexes: a comparative study by the reaction force and reaction electronic flux in molecular and SiO2-supported catalysts.

CONTEXT: This study investigates the ethylene insertion reaction mechanism for polymerization catalysis, aiming to discern differences between Ni-α-imine ketone-type catalyst and their SiO2-supported counterpart. The reaction force analysis unveils a more intricate mechanism with SiO2 support, shedding light on unexplored factors and elucidating the observed lower catalytic activity. Furthermore, reactivity indexes suggest earlier ethylene activation in the supported catalyst, potentially enhancing overall selectivity. Finally, the reaction electronic flux analysis provides detailed insights into the electronic activity at each step of the reaction mechanism. In sum, this study offers a comprehensive understanding of the ethylene insertion reaction mechanism in both molecular and supported catalysts, underscoring the pivotal role of structural and electronic factors in catalytic processes. METHODS: Density functional theory (DFT) calculations were conducted using the ωB97XD functional and the 6-31 + G(d,p) basis sets with Gaussian16 software. Computational techniques utilized in this study encompassed the IRC method, reaction force analysis, and evaluation of electronic descriptors such as electronic chemical potential, molecular hardness, and electrophilicity reactivity indexes. Additionally, reaction electronic flux analysis was employed to investigate electronic activity along the reaction coordinate.

Interaction mechanism of water-soluble inorganic arsenic onto pristine nanoplastics.

Nanoplastics (NPLs) persist in aquatic habitats, leading to incremental research on their interaction mechanisms with metalloids in the environment. In this regard, it is known that plastic debris can reduce the number of water-soluble arsenicals in contaminated environments. Here, the arsenic interaction mechanism with pure NPLs, such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET), aliphatic polyamide (PA), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), and polystyrene (PS) is evaluated using computational chemistry tools. Our results show that arsenic forms stable monolayers on NPLs through surface adsorption, with adsorption energies of 9-24 kcal/mol comparable to those on minerals and composite materials. NPLs exhibit varying affinity towards arsenic based on their composition, with As(V) adsorption showing higher stability than As(III). The adsorption mechanism results from a balance between electrostatics and dispersion forces (physisorption), with an average combined contribution of 87%. PA, PET, PVC, and PS maximize the electrostatic effects over dispersion forces, while PE and PP maximize the dispersion forces over electrostatic effects. The electrostatic contribution is attributed to hydrogen bonding and the activation of terminal O-C, C-H, and C-Cl groups of NPLs, resulting in several pairwise interactions with arsenic. Moreover, NPLs polarity enables high mobility in aqueous environments and fast mass transfer. Upon adsorption, As(III) keeps the NPLs polarity, while As(V) limits subsequent uptake but ensures high mobility in water. The solvation process is destabilizing, and the higher the NPL polarity, the higher the solvation energy penalty. Finally, the mechanistic understanding explains how temperature, pressure, pH, salinity, and aging affect arsenic adsorption. This study provides reliable quantitative data for sorption and kinetic experiments on plastic pollution and enhances our understanding of interactions between water contaminants.

Theoretical Insight into the Effect of Fluorine-Functionalized Metal-Organic Framework Supported Palladium Single-Site Catalyst in the Ethylene Dimerization Reaction.

Ethylene dimerization reaction is one of the most common mechanisms for the production of 1-butene. Recently, metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have received extensive attention in this area since they combine all the advantages of homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysts in a single compound. Here a computational mechanistic study of MOF-supported palladium single-site catalyst for ethylene dimerization reaction is reported. Catalytic systems with both biphenyl-type backbone as organic ligand and its fluorine-functionalization have been investigated to reveal the origin of ligand effects on the catalytic activity and selectivity. The calculations revealed that the nonfluorinated palladium MOF catalyst undergoes dimerization over isomerization reaction. Then the influence of the fluorine-functionalized organic ligand was compared in the dimerization catalytic cycle, which was strongly favored in terms of activity and selectivity. Catalyst-substrate interactions were analyzed by energy decomposition analysis revealing the critical role of ligand backbone functionalization on the activity. This theoretical analysis identified three chemically meaningful dominant effects on these catalysts; steric, electrostatic and charge transfer effects. The steric effects promote nonfluorinated MOF catalyst, whereas the electrostatic effects are the dominant factor that promotes its fluorinated counterpart. This theoretical study provides feedback with future experimental studies about the role of fluorine ligand functionalization in palladium MOF catalysts for ethylene dimerization reaction.

Mechanistic details of ethylene polymerization reaction using methallyl nickel(ii) catalysts.

The mechanism of ethylene polymerization by means of neutral methallyl-Ni(ii) complexes has been studied by quantum chemical calculations. Two isomer complexes having different ligand functionalization at the ortho or para position, and co-activated with trispentafluorephenylborane [B(C6F5)3], were studied according to the Cossee-Arlman's mechanism. Comparison of the reaction mechanism of both isomers shows that energy barriers strongly depend on ligand-functionalization and are mostly due to structural rearrangements. In addition, it was found that para-functionalization can be distinguished by favorable σ-donation whereas ortho-functionalization is more prone to a π back-donation process. Our results concerning the polymerization process for ortho and para isomers not only provide a theoretical perspective of available experimental data, but also explain the experimentally observed higher molecular weight of the methallyl-Ni(ii) ortho isomer co-catalyzed by B(C6F5)3, revealing the role of ligand-functionalization in polyethylene production.

The Role of Co-Activation and Ligand Functionalization in Neutral Methallyl Nickel(II) Catalysts for Ethylene Oligomerization and Polymerization.

A detailed quantum chemical study that analyzed the mechanism of ethylene oligomerization and polymerization by means of a family of four neutral methallyl NiII catalysts is presented. The role of the boron co-activators, BF3 and B(C6 F5 )3 , and the position of ligand functionalization (ortho or para position of the N-arylcyano moiety of the catalysts) were investigated to explain the chain length of the obtained polymers. The chain initialization proceeded with higher activation barriers for the ortho-functionalized complexes (≈19 kcal mol-1 ) than the para-substituted isomers (17-18 kcal mol-1 ). Two main pathways were revealed for the chain propagation: The first pathway was favored when using the B(C6 F5 )3 co-activated catalyst, and it produced long-chain polymers. A second pathway led to the ß-hydrogen complexes, which resulted in chain oligomerization; this pathway was preferred when the BF3 co-activated catalysts were used. Otherwise, the termination of longer chains occurred via a stable hydride intermediate, which was formed with an energy barrier of about 14 kcal mol-1 for the B(C6 F5 )3 co-activated catalysts. Significant new insights were made into the reaction mechanism, whereby neutral methallyl NiII catalysts act in oligomerization and polymerization processes. Specifically, the role of co-activation and ligand functionalization, which are key information for the further design of related catalysts, were revealed.

The performance of methallyl nickel complexes and boron adducts in the catalytic activation of ethylene: a conceptual DFT perspective.

In this work, global and local descriptors of chemical reactivity and selectivity are used to explain the differences in reactivities toward ethylene of methallyl nickel complexes and their B(C6F5)3 and BF3 adducts. DFT calculations were used to explain why nickel complexes alone are inactive in ethylene polymerization while their boron adducts can activate it. It is shown that chemical potential, hardness, electrophilicity and molecular electrostatic potential surfaces describe fairly well the reactivity and selectivity of these organometallic systems toward ethylene. Experimental data indicates that addition of a borane molecule to nickel complexes changes dramatically their reactivity-behavior that is confirmed computationally. Our results show that bare complexes are unable to activate ethylene-a Lewis base-because they also behave as Lewis bases. The addition of the co-catalyst-a Lewis acid-turns the adducts into Lewis acids, making them active towards ethylene.