Alkylidyne metal complexes, synthesis

The first alkylidyne-metal complexes were prepared by Fischer et al. more than 30 years ago. Since this pioneering event, the chemistry of the transition metal-carbon triple bond present in such complexes has developed into a major field of research and though the poly(pyrazolyl)borate ligands were discovered 7 years prior to the synthesis of the first alkylidyne complexes, their importance and significance in this field has only more recently been truly appreciated. 

Two commonly used synthetic methodologies for the synthesis of transition metal complexes with substituted cyclopentadienyl ligands are important. One is based on the functionalization at the ring periphery of Cp or Cp metal complexes and the other consists of the classical reaction of a suitable substituted cyclopentadienyl anion equivalent and a transition metal halide or carbonyl complex. However, a third strategy of creating a specifically substituted cyclopentadienyl ligand from smaller carbon units such as alkylidynes and alkynes within the coordination sphere is emerging and will probably find wider application [22]. 

Byers, P.K, Carr, N. and Stone, F.G.A. (1990) Chemistry of polynuclear metal complexes with bridging carbene or carbyne ligands. Part 106. Synthesis and reactions of the alkylidyne complexes [M ( CR)(CO)2 (C6F5)AuC(pz)3 j (M = W or Mo, R — alkyl or aryl, pz — pyrazol-l-yl) crystal structure of pjC PtAu(C6F5)( l3-CMe)(CO)2(PMe2Ph)2 (C6F5)AuC(pz)3 ]. Journal of the Chemical Society, Dalton Transactions, (12), 3701—3708. 

The potential of metallacarbaborane complexes bearing reactive alkylidyne functionalities is proving to reach far beyond what was imaginable at the time of their initial synthesis (8). Although there are areas of overlap with their alkylidyne(cyclopentaidenyl)metal counterparts, the chemistry of these polyhedral salts extends into boundless new territory, limited only by the imagination of its discoverers. The complexes summarized in this chapter demonstrate how the proton, perhaps the simplest of all chemical reagents, can be used to unlock the potential of alkylidyne(carbabor-ane)metal complexes. 

Boron atoms in transition metal clusters Denuding the boron atom of B-H interactions in transition metal boron clusters Transition metal boride clusters at the molecular level Recent advances in the chemistry of carborane metal complexes incorporating d and /block elements The interplay of alkylidyne and carbaborane ligands at metal centres. I. Synthesis of electronically unsaturated mixed-metal complexes. II. Proton-mediated reactions... 

In this chapter Cp represents C5H4Me and Cp indicates C5Me5. There is material of general relevance in a number of reviews including that in articles on transition metal complexes in organic synthesis, complexes with heteronuclear metal-metal bonds, C-H activation the photochemistry of metal alkyls, alkylidenes and alkylidynes, u.v. photoelectron spectroscopy of metal alkyls , reactive intermediates derived from metallocenes, and M-C bond energies for organometallies . Some other material appears in a... 

Further developments are likely as the chemistry of the compounds described above is explored. Moreover, entirely new dimensions may be added. For example, the synthesis of tungsten-alkylidyne complexes with carba-borane ligands with cage structures smaller than the icosahedral C2B9 fragment should result in the isolation of new electronically unsaturated metal cluster and electron-deficient molecules of types as yet unknown. 

The reversible [2+2] cycloaddition of metal alkylidyne or Fischer-type metal carbyne complexes remains the only general methodology for the synthesis of metallacyclobutadiene complexes. Recent literature revolves principally around the heavier group 6 metals and the investigation of intermediates in catalytic alkyne metathesis (Scheme 25 Equation 45) <1996CHEC-II(lb)887> (W <2005OM4684>, Mo <2003JOM56>). 

The metathesis of alkynes by metal alkylidyne complexes is now a well-established process. The reaction is useful for the catalytic metathesis of alkynes as well as for the synthesis of new metal alkylidyne complexes. The general electronic and steric factors favoring the metathesis reaction were discussed in recent reviews by Schrock (6,7). 

The chemistry of metal-carbon triple bonds has developed considerably during the late 1980s. The synthetic basis was broadened, the utility of high-valent metal alkylidynes in metathesis reactions was further developed and refined, and the potential of low-valent carbyne complexes for applications in organic synthesis has become more apparent. The discovery of novel iridium alkylidyne complexes indicates that the full range of metal-carbon triple bonds is not yet known. We can therefore expect that future work in this area of organometallic chemistry will lead to new discoveries with fundamental implications and practical applications. 

The generation and interconversion of hydrocarbon fragments on metal surfaces is an important aspect of transition metal catalysis. In an effort to model and understand these transformations, much attention has been focused on the synthesis and reactivity of organic species coordinated at polynuclear transition metal centers. Organodiruthenium complexes have provided a particularly rich area of study. The availability of a variety of organometallic derivatives of the bis(T) -cyclopentadienyl)diruthenium carbonyl system has allowed extensive examination of the reactivity of bridging alkylidene, alkylidyne, and ethenylidene ligands. 

For a recent survey on the synthesis of high-valent metal-alkylidene and -alkylidyne complexes, see R. R. Schrock, Chem. Rev., 2002,102, 145. 

In Chapter 8 we described how metal carbides (first mentioned in Section 6-1-4) could serve as precursors to carbyne complexes by way of electrophilic addition. Scheme 10.8 revisits a portion of Scheme 8.12, showing Os-carbide complex 72—with its nucleophilic Ccarbide atom—reacting with methyl triflate or tropylium ion to give alkylidynes 73 and 74, respectively. Comparable reactions occur with the corresponding Ru-carbide complex.87 This method may become more general after the synthesis of additional carbide complexes occurs. 

The a-hydride elimination reactions of Ta and Nb have been investigated most extensively. The driving force for the reaction is provided by the interaction of an empty metal orbital with the a C—H bonding electrons. Steric crowding on the metal as well as the absence of p hydrogens on the ligands are important for successful synthesis. The same principles governing the alkyl-to-alkylidene transformation apply to the alkyli-dene-to-alkylidyne transformation and a number of alkylidyne complexes have been made by the same methods described here for aikyiidene synthesis. ... 

In Section 24.12, we introduced alkene (olefin) metathesis, i.e. metal-catalysed reactions in which C=C bonds are redistributed. The importance of alkene and alkyne metathesis was recognized by the award of the 2005 Nobel Prize in Chemistry to Yves Chauvin, Robert H. Grubbs and Richard R. Schrock for the development of the metathesis method in organic synthesis . Examples of alkene metathesis are shown in Figure 27.3. The Chauvin mechanism for metal-catalysed alkene metathesis involves a metal alkyli-dene species and a series of [2 + 2]-cycloadditions and cycloreversions (Figure 27.4). Scheme 27.6 shows the mechanism for alkyne metathesis which involves a high oxidation state metal alkylidyne complex, L M=CR. 

Despite their obvious similarity to alkenes and alkynes, transition-metal alkylidene and alkylidyne complexes have not been used as building blocks for the synthesis of lowdimensional materials analogous to polyenes and polyynes. We have begun to explore the syntheses, structures, and properties of conjugated complexes and polymers derived from metal-alkylidyne complexes as part of our effort to develop the chemistry of transition-metal analogues of conjugated organic compounds. 

The work described herein is directed towards the synthesis of alkylidyne complexes of the later transition metals, specifically iron. Two approaches present themselves for the synthesis of alkylidyne complexes which might otherwise be unstable, viz steric or electronic stabilisation. The first approach involves the accumulation of steric bulk in the vicinity of the metal-carbon multiple bond, an effect easily acheived for... 

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