Iron vinylidenes reaction with alcohols

Most efforts to explore the reactivity of ruthenium carbene complexes have employed the alkoxycarbene species so readily synthesized from the inter- or intramolecular reaction of vinylidene complexes with alcohols. These electrophilic alkoxycarbene complexes exhibit only limited reactivity at Ca, primarily with hydride reagents. For example, treatment of the 2-oxacyclopentylidene complex 97 with NaAlH2(OCH2CH2OMe)2 affords the neutral 2-tetrahydrofuranyl complex (98) [Eq. (89)] (55), as was anticipated from similar reductions of iron carbene complexes (87). 

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