Carbon tetramerization

The crystal structures of many organolithium compounds have been determined.44 Phenyllithium has been crystallized as an ether solvate. The structure is tetrameric with lithium and carbon atoms at alternating corners of a highly distorted cube. The lithium atoms form a tetrahedron and the carbons are associated with the faces of the tetrahedron. Each carbon is 2.33 A from the three neighboring lithium atoms and an ether molecule is coordinated to each lithium atom. Figures 7.2a and b show, respectively, the Li-C cluster and the complete array of atoms, except for hydrogen 45 Section 6.2 of Part A provides additional information on the structure of organolithium compounds. 

The reaction of CDI with primary phosphines was expected to lead first to an azolide ImCOPHR, analogous to imidazole-N-carboxamide as the reaction product of primary amines and CDI. In fact, reaction of phenylphosphine with CDI leads directly to imidazole, carbonmonoxide, and tetraphenylcyclotetraphosphine (THF, reflux, 5h). In analogy to the dissociation of imidazole-AT-carboxamide into isocyanates and imidazole, this can be explained by the assumption that the first-formed ImCOPHC6H5 dissociates into an isocyanate analogue, C6H5P=C=0, which is unstable and decomposes into carbon monoxide and phenylphosphene (C6H5P) which tetramerizes. However, the intermediate formation of phenylphosphene has not yet been definitely proved. 

Triply bridging carbonates between three zinc centers have been identified in nine different X-ray structures deposited in the CSD 458,461,465-467 For example, a binuclear ft-OH zinc complex with a tetradentate /V-donor ligand absorbs atmospheric carbon dioxide to a triply bridged carbonate.468 Examples are also known where the metal atoms are in varying coordination environments. The complex cation [Zn3(bipyridine)6(/U3-C03)(H20)2]4+ contains one penta- and two hexacoordinate zinc centers.469 A tetrapodal compartmental ligand forms a tetrameric complex with zinc that contains the carbonate bridging between three of the four zinc centers.470... 

Zinc carbamate complexes are well known, and the structural types and stabilities can be compared with thiocarbamates and dithiocarbamates which are discussed in Sections 6.8.11.1.3 and 6.8.7.1.4482 Carbamates of zinc can be formed from the reaction of carbon dioxide with alkylzinc alkyl amides and further reaction with alkylzinc can give a distorted cubane structure.483 The tetrameric diethylcarbamate species initially formed can also be used to produce monomeric or dimeric carbamate structures in reaction with amines tetramethylethylenediamine forms a monomer [(Me2NCH2)2Zn(02CN(C2H5)2)2] with an octahedral zinc center and pyridine forms a dimer[CsH5NZn2Me(02CN(C2H5)2)3] with tetrahedral zinc centers.484... 

Figure 3 Solid-state structure and partial labeling scheme of tetrameric [(2-pyridyl)CSiMe3Zn]4 9. The trimethylsilyl groups have been truncated to the silicon atoms. Here and in all following figures the hydrogen atoms are not shown, and the carbon atoms are not labeled.

Bis(l-methylboratabenzene)lead 42 is synthesized in 63% yield by the reaction of LifCsHsBMe) with lead(n) chloride. The X-ray structure analysis of 42 reveals some remarkably short intermolecular contacts from the lead atoms to the ortho-carbon atoms of neighboring molecules which create a tetrameric packing unit. Compound 42 forms weak adducts such as 43 with nitrogen Lewis bases like TMEDA or 4,4 -dimethyl-2,2 -bipyridine.71... 

Polymerization in electrostatic systems like the ones mentioned above is stericaUy inhibited by alkyl substitution at the a-carbon which must assume a coordination number greater than 4. Coates and Glockhng have treated this inhibition of polymerization in terms of decreased electronegative character of the branched alkyl groups. Therefore, stimulated by the idea that f-afkylhthium compounds may exist as low polymers or even as monomeric molecules, Weiner and coworkers and Kottke and Stalke have isolated f-butyllithium as a pure substance for the first time and characterised it by spectroscopic methods and X-ray diffraction. The colourless crystalline solid was found to be tetrameric over a range of concentrations in both benzene and hexane ... 

Figure 8.13 Illustration of the tetrameric [TIINtSIMe j/Cf.H Pr j-2,6 t]4 " highlighting the TI—TI interactions as bold lines. Thallium, nitrogen and silicon atoms are shown as black spheres and carbon atoms are white. Selected bond lengths Tl(l)-N(l) 2.303(6), Tl(2)-N(2) 2.307(6) A, TI-TI interactions 4.06 A avg., Tl-centroid— ca. 3.11 A...

All-carbon 2 + 3 cycloadditions 5-49 Dimerization of olefins 5-50 Addition of carbenes or carbenoids to olefins or alkynes 5-51 Tetramerization of alkynes... 

In the presence of trace amounts of water, the tetrameric p,2-oxo complex (182) in 1,2-dimethoxyethane is transformed into a p, -oxo tetrameric complex (183 equation 254), characterized by an X-ray structure.574 In contrast, (182) 572,575 is inactive towards the oxidation of phenols. The reaction of N,N,N, AT -tetramethyl-l,3-propanediamine (TMP) with CuCl, C02 and dioxygen results in the quantitative formation of the /z-carbonato complex (184 equation 255).s76 This compound acts as an initiator for the oxidative coupling of phenols by 02. 6 Such jz-carbonato complexes, also prepared from the reaction of Cu(BPI)CO with 02 [BPI = 1,3 bis(2-(4-methyl-pyridyl)imino)isoindoline],577 are presumably involved as reactive intermediates in the oxidative carbonylation of methanol to dimethyl carbonate (see below).578 Upon reaction with methanol, the tetrameric complex (182 L = Py X = Cl) produces the bis(/z-methoxo) complex (185 equation 256), which has been characterized by an X-ray structure,579 and is reactive for the oxidatiye cleavage of pyrocatechol to muconic acid derivatives.580,581... 

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