Iron carbonyl complexes reduction reactions

For example, Allen et al. have recently isolated an iron carbonyl complex with a bicarbonate counterion (Fe(dmpe)2(C0)H)(HC03) with dmpe = 1,2 bis(dimethylphosphino)ethane, resulting from the iron(II)-mediated reductive disproportionation of C02 [104], although the reaction mechanism is still speculative. In a related system, Karsh et al. [9] had observed, during the reaction of C02 with Fe(PMe3)4, the formation of a side-on complex Fe(C02)(PMe3)4 and of a carbonyl carbonate species Fe(PMe3)3(C0)(C03). 

Following the isolation of these complexes, all of the mechanistic studies on the carbonylation and reduction reactions of nitroarenes catalysed by Ru3(CO)i2, even in the presence of several promoters, have focused on the reactivity of these or related clusters [157-164]. Moreover, many studies have been also conducted on analogous osmium [165-172] and iron (see paragraph 6.6.) clusters, including insertion reactions of isocyanates, which yield potential intermediates in the carbonylation reaction (Insertion reaction of other cumulenes into the Ru-N bond will not be discussed here. However, see the paragraph of the synthesis of heterocycles later in this chapter). Although not all of the previously mentioned studies were intended to be a basis for a mechanistic understanding of the reactions here discussed, they still contain a lot of information on the possible transformations of amido or imido moieties on a trinuclear cluster. 

Iron carbonyl complexes containing 77 -alkyl-77 -allyl coordinated hydrocarbon ligands are obtained in several ways. Nucleophilic addition to cationic iron complexes containing 77 -pentadienyl ligands yields (pentenediyl)iron complexes. Oxidatively-induced reductive elimination of these complexes can be utilized as a means to generate 1,2,3-trisubstituted cyclopropanes.The reaction of cationic cycloheptadienyl complexes (Scheme 22) with appropriate nucleophiles also yields the alkyl-allyliron carbonyl complexes. Fe(CO)s also reacts with a- or /3-pincnc in refluxing dioxane (Scheme 22) to produce an alkyl-allyliron complex. Recently, 1,2- and 1,4-disubstituted [(pentadienyl)Fe(CO)3] cations were shown to react with carbon nucleophiles, such as sodium dimethylmalonate, to yield 77 77 -allyl complexes as products. 

One of the complexes formed in the reaction of diphenylacetylene and iron dodecacarbonyl is a red, crystalline compound of the composition [Fe2(CO)6(PhC2Ph)], which, on reduction with sodium in liquid ammonia, gives dibenzyl (117). By analogy with the cobalt carbonyl complex, structure (XXXV M = Fe) is proposed, in which the 7r-elcctrons of the triple... 

Some insight into the mechanisms of the iodine-promoted carbonylation has been obtained by radioactive tracer techniques [17] and low-temperature NMR spectroscopy [18]. The mechanism involves the formation of HI, which in a series of reactions forms with rhodium a hydrido iodo complex which reacts with ethylene to give an ethyl complex. Carbonylation and reductive elimination yield propionic acid iodide. The acid itself is then obtained after hydrolysis. The rate of carboxylation was reported to be accelerated by the addition of minor amounts of iron, cobalt, or manganese iodide [19]. The rhodium catalyst can be stabilized by triphenyl phosphite [20]. However, it is doubtful whether the ligand itself would meet the requirements of an industrial-scale process. 

The heptanuclear iron carbonyl cluster [Fe3(CO)u(/u-H)]2-Fe(DMF)4 (178) acted as an efficient catalyst in the reduction of carboxamides by l,2-bis(dimethylsilyl)benzene in toluene to the corresponding amines in high yields. Several tertiary and secondary amides including a sterically crowded amide were also reduced smoothly A review of the development of optically active cobalt complex catalysts for enan-tioselective synthetic reactions has addressed the applications of ketoiminatocobalt(II) complexes such as (5)-MPAC (179) and (5)-AMAC (180), transition-state models for borohydride reduction, halogen-free reduction by cobalt-carbene complexes. 

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