T-Shaped Palladium and Platinum {MNO}10 Nitrosyl Complexes.

The synthesis and characterization of a homologous series of T-shaped {MNO}10 nitrosyl complexes of the form [M(PR3)2(NO)]+ (M = Pd, Pt; R = tBu, Ad) are reported. These diamagnetic nitrosyls are obtained from monovalent or zerovalent precursors by treatment with NO and NO+, respectively, and are notable for distinctly bent M-NO angles of ∼123° in the solid state. Adoption of this coordination mode in solution is also supported by the analysis of isotopically enriched samples by 15N NMR spectroscopy. Effective oxidation states of M0/NO+ are calculated, and metal-nitrosyl bonding has been interrogated using DFT-based energy decomposition analysis techniques. While a linear nitrosyl coordination mode was found to be electronically preferred, the M-NO and P-M-P angles are inversely correlated to the extent that binding in this manner is prevented by steric repulsion between the bulky ancillary phosphine ligands.

Stability and C-H Bond Activation Reactions of Palladium(I) and Platinum(I) Metalloradicals: Carbon-to-Metal H-Atom Transfer and an Organometallic Radical Rebound Mechanism.

One-electron oxidation of palladium(0) and platinum(0) bis(phosphine) complexes enables isolation of a homologous series of linear d9 metalloradicals of the form [M(PR3)2]+ (M = Pd, Pt; R = tBu, Ad), which are stable in 1,2-difluorobenzene (DFB) solution for >1 day at room temperature when partnered with the weakly coordinating [BArF4]- (ArF = 3,5-(CF3)2C6H3) counterion. The metalloradicals exhibit reduced stability in THF, decreasing in the order palladium(I) > platinum(I) and PAd3 > PtBu3, especially in the case of [Pt(PtBu3)2]+, which is converted into a 1:1 mixture of the platinum(II) complexes [Pt(PtBu2CMe2CH2)(PtBu3)]+ and [Pt(PtBu3)2H]+ upon dissolution at room temperature. Cyclometalation of [Pt(PtBu3)2]+ can also be induced by reaction with the 2,4,6-tri-tert-butylphenoxyl radical in DFB, and a common radical rebound mechanism involving carbon-to-metal H-atom transfer and formation of an intermediate platinum(III) hydride complex, [Pt(PtBu2CMe2CH2)H(PtBu3)]+, has been substantiated by computational analysis. Radical C-H bond oxidative addition is correlated with the resulting MII-H bond dissociation energy (M = Pt > Pd), and reactions of the metalloradicals with 9,10-dihydroanthracene in DFB at room temperature provide experimental evidence for the proposed C-H bond activation manifold in the case of platinum, although conversion into platinum(II) hydride derivatives is considerably faster for [Pt(PtBu3)2]+ (t1/2 = 1.2 h) than [Pt(PAd3)2]+ (t1/2 ∼ 40 days).

Heterolytic carbon-iodine bond cleavage by a palladium(I) metalloradical.

The well-defined Pd(I) metalloradical [Pd(PtBu3)2]+ reacts with aryl and alkyl iodides at room temperature, yielding [Pd(PtBu3)(µ-I)]2 and phosphonium salts. Pd(II) aryl/alkyl derivates, reflecting net radical oxidative addition of the substrate to the metalloradical, are generated during the reaction and two examples have been isolated and crystallographically characterised.

Oxidative Cross-Coupling of Boron and Antimony Nucleophiles via Palladium(I).

The use of an isolatable, monomeric Pd(I) complex as a catalyst for the oxidative cross-coupling of aryl-antimony and aryl-boron nucleophiles is reported. This reaction tolerates a wide variety of substrates, with >20:1 selectivity for cross-coupled products. This strategy offers a new approach to achieving the selective cross-coupling of nucleophiles.