Di-tert-butyldiphosphatetrahedrane as a Source of 1,2-Diphosphacyclobutadiene Ligands.

Reactions of di-tert-butyldiphosphatetrahedrane (1) with cycloocta-1,5-diene- or anthracene-stabilised metalate anions of iron and cobalt consistently afford complexes of the rarely encountered 1,2-diphosphacyclobutadiene ligand, which have previously been very challenging synthetic targets. The subsequent reactivity of 1,2-diphosphacyclobutadiene cobaltates toward various electrophiles has also been investigated and is compared to reactions of related 1,3-diphosphacyclobutadiene complexes. The results highlight the distinct reactivity of such isomeric species, showing that the 1,2-isomers can act as precursors for previously unknown triphospholium ligands. The electronic structures of the new complexes were investigated by several methods, including NMR, EPR and Mößbauer spectroscopies as well as quantum chemical calculations.

Heterogeneous Olefin Hydrogenation Enabled by a Highly-Reduced Nickel(-II) Catalyst Precursor.

The hydrogenation of olefins, styrenes, enoates, imines, and sterically hindered tri-substituted olefins was accomplished using the pre-catalyst dilithiumbis(cycloocta-1,5-diene)nickelate(-II) (1). The mild conditions tolerate hydroxyl, halide, ester, and lactone functionalities. Mechanistic studies, including reaction progress analyses, poisoning experiments, and multinuclear NMR monitoring, indicate that a heterotopic (nickel nanoparticle) catalyst is in operation.

Heterogeneous Olefin Hydrogenation Enabled by a Highly-Reduced Nickel(-II) Catalyst Precursor.

Invited for the cover of this issue is the group of Robert Wolf at the University of Regensburg and colleagues at the University of Hamburg. The image depicts the hydrogenation of triphenylethylene. Read the full text of the article at 10.1002/chem.201905537.

Low-Valence Anionic α-Diimine Iron Complexes: Synthesis, Characterization, and Catalytic Hydroboration Studies.

The synthesis of rare anionic heteroleptic and homoleptic α-diimine iron complexes is described. Heteroleptic BIAN (bis(aryl)iminoacenaphthene) complexes 1-[K([18]c-6)(thf)0.5] and 2-[K([18]c-6)(thf)2] were synthesized by reduction of the [(BIAN)FeBr2] precursor complex using stoichiometric amounts of potassium graphite in the presence of the corresponding olefin. The electronic structure of these paramagnetic species was investigated by numerous spectroscopic analyses (NMR, EPR, 57Fe Mössbauer, UV-vis), magnetic measurements (Evans NMR method, SQUID), and theoretical techniques (DFT, CASSCF). Whereas anion 1 is a low-spin complex, anion 2 consists of an intermediate-spin Fe(III) center. Both complexes are efficient precatalysts for the hydroboration of carbonyl compounds under mild reaction conditions. The reaction of bis(anthracene) ferrate(1-) gave the homoleptic BIAN complex 3-[K([18]c-6)(thf)], which is less catalytically active. The electronic structure was elucidated with the same techniques as described for complexes 1-[K([18]c-6)(thf)0.5] and 2-[K([18]c-6)(thf)2] and revealed an Fe(II) species in a quartet ground state.

Amine-Borane Dehydrogenation and Transfer Hydrogenation Catalyzed by α-Diimine Cobaltates.

Anionic α-diimine cobalt complexes, such as [K(thf)1.5 {(Dipp BIAN)Co(η4 -cod)}] (1; Dipp=2,6-diisopropylphenyl, cod=1,5-cyclooctadiene), catalyze the dehydrogenation of several amine-boranes. Based on the excellent catalytic properties, an especially effective transfer hydrogenation protocol for challenging olefins, imines, and N-heteroarenes was developed. NH3 BH3 was used as a dihydrogen surrogate, which transferred up to two equivalents of H2 per NH3 BH3 . Detailed spectroscopic and mechanistic studies are presented, which document the rate determination by acidic protons in the amine-borane.

[3+2] Fragmentation of a Pentaphosphido Ligand by Cyanide.

The activation of white phosphorus (P4 ) by transition-metal complexes has been studied for several decades, but the functionalization and release of the resulting (organo)phosphorus ligands has rarely been achieved. Herein we describe the formation of rare diphosphan-1-ide anions from a P5 ligand by treatment with cyanide. Cobalt diorganopentaphosphido complexes have been synthesized by a stepwise reaction sequence involving a low-valent diimine cobalt complex, white phosphorus, and diorganochlorophosphanes. The reactions of the complexes with tetraalkylammonium or potassium cyanide afford a cyclotriphosphido cobaltate anion 5 and 1-cyanodiphosphan-1-ide anions [R2 PPCN]- (6-R). The molecular structure of a related product 7 suggests a novel reaction mechanism, where coordination of the cyanide anion to the cobalt center induces a ligand rearrangement. This is followed by nucleophilic attack of a second cyanide anion at a phosphorus atom and release of the P2 fragment.

Direct synthesis of an anionic 13-vertex closo-cobaltacarborane cluster.

Reaction of 1,2-bis(diphenylphosphino)-ortho-carborane (L) with [K(thf){(MesBIAN)Co(η4-cod)}] (1, MesBIAN = bis(mesityliminoace-naphthene)diimine, cod = 1,5-cyclooctadiene) affords an anionic 13-vertex closo-cobaltacarborane cluster (2) in one step. The mechanism of this transformation has been studied by experimental and quantum chemical techniques, which suggest that a series of outer-sphere electron transfer and isomerisation processes occurs. This work shows that low-valent metalate anions are promising reagents for the synthesis of anionic metallacarborane clusters.

Construction of alkyl-substituted pentaphosphido ligands in the coordination sphere of cobalt.

Rare mono- and diorganopentaphosphido cobalt complexes are accessible by P-P condensation using the unprecedented, reactive cobalt-gallium tetraphosphido complex [K(dme)2{(MesBIAN)Co(µ-η4:η2-P4)Ga(nacnac)}] (2). Compound 2 was prepared in good yield by reaction of [K(Et2O){(MesBIAN)Co(η4-1,5-cod)}] [1, BIAN = bis(mesitylimino)acenaphthene diimine, cod = 1,5-cyclooctadiene] with [Ga(nacnac)(η2-P4)] (nacnac = CH[CMeN(2,6-iPr2C6H3)]2). Reactions with R2PCl (R = iPr, tBu, and Cy) selectively afford [(MesBIAN)Co(cyclo-P5R2)] (3a-c), which feature η4-coordinated 1,1-diorganopentaphosphido ligands. The mechanism of formation of these species has been studied by 31P{1H} NMR spectroscopy and DFT calculations. In the case of 3a (R = iPr), it was possible to identify the intermediate [(MesBIAN)Co(µ-η4:η2-P5iPr2)Ga(nacnac)] (4) by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. A related, monosubstituted organopentaphosphido cobalt complex [(MesBIAN)Co(µ-η4:η1-P5 tBu)GaCl(nacnac)] (5) was isolated by reacting dichloroalkylphosphane tBuPCl2 with 2. Heterobimetallic complexes such as 2 thus may enable the targeted construction of a range of new metal-coordinated polyphosphorus frameworks by P-P condensation.