Methyl gold, decomposition

Tri-p-tolyl tellurium iodide1 melts with decomposition at 232° to 233° C., dissolves readily in methyl alcohol or chloroform, less readily in benzene or ether, and is insoluble in water. Tri-p-tolyl tellurium bromide occurs when the iodide or chloride is boiled with silver bromide. It melts at 265° to 266° C. with decomposition, and dissolves in alcohols or chloroform, but is insoluble in benzene or ether. Tri-p-tolyl tellurium chloride is prepared from the bromide in the usual way. It melts at 260° to 261° C. and gives precipitates with the chlorides of mercury, tin and gold, picric acid and platinic chloride. The hydroxide is a resin, melting at about 110° C., and yielding a pier ate, consisting of long prisms, M.pt. 194° to 195° C.a... 

A related group of compounds is that of the gold(III) dimethyl(alkoxycarbonyl) complexes, accessible by the reaction of carbon monoxide with dimethyl(alkoxy)(triphenyl-phosphine)gold(III), which is prepared in situ from cw-[AuIMe2(PPli3)] and sodium alkoxide in methanol (equation 80)353,359. Thermolysis of the methoxycarbonyl complex in benzene leads to the reductive elimination of methyl acetate and ethane, indicating competition between the two modes of decomposition illustrated in Scheme 27. The reaction of the same complex with electrophiles such as hydrogen chloride proceeds with liberation of carbon monoxide and methanol, as illustrated in equation 81. 

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