Ruthenium reactions with OsCl

The reactions of allenes and dienes with iron and ruthenium compounds form a large number of various allyl complexes (see allene complexes). Osmium forms allyl compounds of the formulas [OsCl(C3H5)(PPh3)3] and [Os(C8Hg)(CO)3]. 

The first report of NHC-containing osmium compounds acting as catalysts came from Esteruelas and co-workers in 2005. Thus, cationic benzyli-dene complexes 44 were prepared by reaction of the corresponding 16-electron precursors [(NHC)OsCl(p-cymene)][OTf] (NHC = IMes or IPr) with phe-nyldiazomethane, and their potential as initiators for olefin metathesis was probed in the RCM of diethyl diallylmalonate, the ROMP of cyclooctene, and a variety of self- and cross-metathesis reactions (Equation (7.10)). Although they were not as efficient as standard ruthenium-benzylidene metathesis initiators, compounds 44 displayed, nevertheless, a fairly decent activity. More importantly, in addition to being the first NHC-Os catalytic application, this study constituted a rare example of osmium catalysed C-C bond formation. 

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