Coordination stabilising organometallic compounds

The use of bulky monodentate m-terphenyl ligands in the stabilisation of d-block organometallic compounds is surveyed. Importantly, these ligands have facilitated the isolation of hitherto unknown species containing low-coordinate centres and metal-metal multiple bonds. This review reports on these advances with emphasis on the synthesis, structural characterisation and, where possible, reactivity studies of complexes featuring metal-carbon bonds between m-terphenyl ligands and the transition metals. 

The alkoxides Ce(OR)4 are another well-developed class of Ce compounds. The alkoxide group plays an important role in stabilising the Ce(IV) state, witness the existence of [CeCp2(OBuOz] and [CeCp3(OBu )], when other Ce(IV) organometallics cannot be isolated. The isopropoxide is volatile in vacuo below 200 °C (its bis (isopropanol) adduct has six-coordinate cerium). General methods are available to... 

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