Molecular-orbital calculations carbenes

Self-consistent field molecular orbital calculations by Fenske and coworkers have confirmed that nucleophilic additions to Fischer and related complexes [e.g., (CO)sCr=CXY, (T)5-C5H5)(CO)2Mn=CXY], are frontier orbital-controlled rather than charge-controlled reactions (7-9). Interaction of the HOMO of the nucleophile with the carbene complex LUMO (localized on Ca) destroys the metal-carbon w-interaction and converts the bond to a single one. 

The reactions of Fischer and Schrock carbyne complexes are of interest because they may act as intermediates in chemical synthesis. Typical reactivity of carbyne complexes with nucleophiles (i.e., alkyl lithium reagents and metal(I) alkoxides) are consistent with the electronics and molecular orbital calculations for these types of complexes [Eq. (9) 22]. The nucleophile adds to the carbyne-carbon, resulting in the formation of a carbene complex. The reaction of a Grignard reagent with a carbyne complex is expected to demonstrate similar reactivity. 

As with carbene complexes, metal carbynes display a range of reactivity with electrophiles and nucleophiles. Molecular orbital calculations show that even cationic Fischer carbyne complexes are polarized as M, +=C A neutral Fischer- and Schrock carbyne complexes have an even greater negative charge on Ccarbyne.93 If all reactions between carbyne complexes and other species were charge-controlled, we would predict that nucleophiles would always attack at the metal and electrophiles at Ccarbyne. As we should expect by now, the picture is more complicated in practice. 

In this section we will discuss various reactive intermediates that contain silicon. In particular, the silicon analogues of the classic organic reactive intermediates such as carbenes (silylenes), carbenium (silicenium) ions and carbanions (silyl anions) have attracted the interest of experimentalists and theoreticians. In light of the elusive nature of these species it is not surprising that much of what we know about their properties comes from theory, in particular ab initio molecular orbital calculations. 

The reactivity of carbene-metal complexes, amongst others the reactivity with respect to alkenes and alkynes, has been reviewed by Dotz Just like free carbenes the coordinated carbenes add to triple bonds to give cyclopropene derivatives. Other reaction products, however, are also possible. For instance, the carbene ligand of chromium complex 23 reacts with diphenylacetylene to a mixture of products, including naphthalene derivative 24 and furan derivative 25 (equation 18). A carbonyl ligand has participated. Molecular orbital calculations by Hofmann and Hammerle " on this system reveal that the reaction would pass through an y-vinylcarbene type of complex (26) instead of through a planar chromacyclobutene 27. The subsequent steps to yield either phenol or furan could involve vinylketene 28, but this still is a matter of debate. Similar, but more selective, furan syntheses have been observed for carbene complexes based on iron and cobalt. ... 

The results of experimental observations and molecular orbital calculations indicate that many carbenes have a nonlinear triplet ground state. Exceptions are the dihalocarbenes and carbenes with oxygen, nitrogen or sulfiar atoms attached to the bivalent carbon, all of which are singlets. The singlet and triplet states of a carbene do not necessarily show the same chemical behaviour. For example, addition of singlet carbenes to olelinic double bonds to form cyclopropane derivatives is more stereoselective than addition of triplet carbenes. 

Pertinent reviews published during 1980 cover cyclometallation of P-donor ligands, CO insertion into metal-carbon o-bonds, mechanistic features of catalytic CO hydrogenation reactions, and stoicheiometric reactions of transition-metal carbene complexes. Other articles of interest deal with the stability of metal-carbon bonds, " transition-state geometry for insertion of metals into C-H bonds, organic synthesis using Group VIII metal complexes, and C-H bond activation by transition metals. " Molecular orbital calculations on the interconversion of metal bis(olefin) and metallocyclo-pentane complexes have been reported. ... 

The Dotz reaction mechanism has received further support from kinetic and theoretical studies. An early kinetic investigation [37] and the observation that the reaction of the metal carbene with the alkyne is supressed in the presence of external carbon monoxide [38] indicated that the rate-determining step is a reversible decarbonylation of the original carbene complex. Additional evidence for the Dotz mechanistic hyphotesis has been provided by extended Hiickel molecular orbital [23, 24] and quantum chemical calculations [25],... 

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