Ruthenium complexes ligand substitution reactions

The possibility of the practical application of the catalytic photode-composition of water based on the reactivity of the excited states of tris(2,2 -bipyridine) complexes of ruthenium(III) and ruthenium(II) has attracted considerable interest, but it is now clear that the efficiency of this process is limited not only by the lack of efficient catalysts, particularly for the dioxygen-evolving path, but also by both thermal and photochemical ligand oxidation 1,2) and ligand substitution reactions (3) of the 2,2 -bipyridine complexes. The stoichiometrically analogous tris(2,2 -bipyridine) and tris(l,10-phenanthroline) complexes of both... 

From a practical standpoint, it is of interest to devise a one-step synthesis of the catalyst. Since both reactions 2 and 3 are ligand substitution reactions, it is quite conceivable that both steps can be carried out at the same time. When we reacted [Ru(COD)Cl2]n with BINAP and sodium acetate in acetic acid, we indeed obtained Ru(BINAP)(OAc)2 in good yields (70-80%). Interestingly, when the reaction was carried out in the absence of sodium acetate, no Ru(BINAP)(OAe)2 was obtained. The product was a mixture of chloro-ruthenium-BINAP complexes. A 3ip NMR study revealed that the mixture contained a major species (3) (31P [ H] (CDCI3) Pi=70.9 ppm P2=58.3 ppm J = 52.5 Hz) which accounted for more than 50% of the ruthenium-phosphine complexes (Figure 2). These complexes appeared to be different from previously characterized and published Ru(BINAP) species (12,13). More interestingly, these mixed complexes were found to catalyze the asymmetric hydrogenation of 2-(6 -methoxy-2 -naphthyl)acrylic acid with excellent rates and enantioselectivities. 

The pentammine aqua ion [Ru(NH3)j(H20)]2+, best made by zinc amalgam reduction and aquation of [Ru(NH3)5C1]2+, undergoes extensively studied substitution reactions first order in both the ruthenium complex and the incoming ligand (e.g. NH3, py) and is a convenient source of other... 

Besides ruthenium porphyrins (vide supra), several other ruthenium complexes were used as catalysts for asymmetric epoxidation and showed unique features 114,115 though enantioselectivity is moderate, some reactions are stereospecific and treats-olefins are better substrates for the epoxidation than are m-olcfins (Scheme 20).115 Epoxidation of conjugated olefins with the Ru (salen) (37) as catalyst was also found to proceed stereospecifically, with high enantioselectivity under photo-irradiation, irrespective of the olefmic substitution pattern (Scheme 21).116-118 Complex (37) itself is coordinatively saturated and catalytically inactive, but photo-irradiation promotes the dissociation of the apical nitrosyl ligand and makes the complex catalytically active. The wide scope of this epoxidation has been attributed to the unique structure of (37). Its salen ligand adopts a deeply folded and distorted conformation that allows the approach of an olefin of any substitution pattern to the intermediary oxo-Ru species.118 2,6-Dichloropyridine IV-oxide (DCPO) and tetramethylpyrazine /V. V -dioxide68 (TMPO) are oxidants of choice for this epoxidation. 

Scheme 3 shows the details of the synthetic strategy adopted for the preparation of heteroleptic cis- and trans-complexes. Reaction of dichloro(p-cymene)ruthenium(II) dimer in ethanol solution at reflux temperature with 4,4,-dicarboxy-2.2 -bipyridine (L) resulted the pure mononuclear complex [Ru(cymene)ClL]Cl. In this step, the coordination of substituted bipyridine ligand to the ruthenium center takes place with cleavage of the doubly chloride-bridged structure of the dimeric starting material. The presence of three pyridine proton environments in the NMR spectrum is consistent with the symmetry seen in the solid-state crystal structure (Figure 24). 

Kondo and Watanabe developed allylations of various types of aldehydes and oximes by using nucleophilic (7r-allyl)ruthenium(ll) complexes of type 154 bearing carbon monoxide ligands (Equation (29)).345 These 73-allyl-ruthenium complexes 154 are ambiphilic reagents and the presence of the carbon monoxide ligands proved to be essential to achieve catalytic allylation reactions. Interestingly, these transformations occur with complete regioselectivity only the more substituted allylic terminus adds to the aldehyde. 

The chemistry of these compounds has not been investigated in detail. Scheme 12 summarizes some of the chemistry that has been established for the ruthenium complex RugClCO) (192). In general, the octahedral metal-carbido skeleton is maintained, substitution reactions occurring with phosphine, phosphites, and arsine ligands. Base attack leads to the production of the anion [Ru8C(CO)16P, which is... 

Aromatics occur as ligands in ruthenium complexes that are used for hydrogen transfer reaction, i.e. two hydrogen atoms are transferred from a donor molecule, e.g. an alcohol, to a ketone, producing another alcohol. Especially the enantiospecific variant has become important, see Chapter 4.4. The substitution pattern of the aromatic compound influences the enantioselectivity of the reaction. 

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