Transition metal clusters oxidation reactions

For mixed lanthanide-transition metal clusters, Yukawa et al. have synthesized an octahedral [SmNi6] cluster by the reaction of Sm3+ and [Ni(pro)2] in nonaque-ous medium [66-68]. The six [Ni(pro)2] ligands use 12 carboxylate oxygen atoms to coordinate to the Sm3+ ion, which is located at the center of an octahedral cage formed by six nickel atoms. The coordination polyhedron of the central Sm3+ ion may be best described as an icosahedron. The [SmNir, core is stable in solution but the crystal is unstable in air. The cyclic voltammogram shows one reduction step from Sm3+ to Sm2+ and six oxidation steps due to the Ni2+ ions. Later, similar [LaNis] and CjdNif> clusters were also prepared. 

It has been found in the meantime that reaction (1) is generalizable (752), and that oxidative additions of this type occur for such widely differing substrates H2Y as ethylene, benzene 130), cyclic olefins, alkyl and aryl phosphines, aniline 337, 406), and H2S 130), ail of which give the same product structure with a triply-bridging Y ligand. The stability of these third-row transition metal clusters has stiU prevented catalytic reactions of these species, but it is likely that similar ones are involved in olefin and acetylene reactions catalyzed by other metal complexes. 

The first carbidocarbonyl transition metal cluster to be recognized was Fe5C(CO),5 (1), which was isolated in very low yield from the reaction of triiron dodecacarbonyl with methylphenylacetylene and characterized by X-ray diffraction by Dahl and co-workers (2). The molecule (Fig. 1) comprises a square pyramidal Fe5 core with the carbide situated. 08 A below the center of a square face. Each iron atom bears three terminal carbonyls. Improved syntheses of 1 by protonation (5) or oxidation of [Fe6C(CO)l6]2-... 

Several studies have demonstrated the ability to observe a complete catalytic cycle in the gas-phase. Wallace and Whetten, and Woste and coworkers combined gas-phase experiments and theoretical calculations to elucidate the fuU catalytic cycle of CO oxidation including intermediate reaction steps [27-29]. Schwarz et al. have also demonstrated a full gas-phase catalytic cycle for the oxidation of CO in the presence of cationic platinum oxide clusters [30]. Furthermore, Armentrout and co-workers have studied the energetics of the individual steps in the overall catalytic cycles and produced a wealth of information on the thermochemistry, structure, and bond energies of transition metal clusters [31]. Clearly, the ability to probe the active sites and intermediates of complex catalytic reactions through gas-phase ion-molecule studies has yielded significant insight into the mechanisms of condensed-phase catalytic processes. 

It is important to remember when dealing with bulky organic molecules adsorbed on supported metal catalysts, that in the classical kinetic treatment the surface is treated as having infinite size. In the majority of organic catalytic reactions over nanometer-sized transition metal clusters dispersed on oxide supports it is definitely far from reality. The differences between extended surfaces and a nonometer-sized cluster can be profound, which requires special approaches. 

This is a special volume of Inorganic Syntheses that focuses on complexes that are likely to be useful as starting materials for the preparations of new transition metal coordination and organometallic compounds. There are chapters on complexes with weakly coordinated and therefore easily displaced ligands, low-valent complexes that undergo oxidative-addition reactions, substituted metal carbonyl complexes, nucleophilic metal carbonyl anions, transition metal clusters, a variety of cyclopentadienyl complexes, lanthanide and actinide complexes, and a range of other useful ligands and complexes. 

We have found that the main group metal and metalloid reductants mocury, bismuth, and antimony are highly effective " in reducing WCIe or M0CI5 at surprisingly lower temperatures than commonly used in the solid-state synthesis of early transition metal cluster halides. BorosUicate ampules can be substituted for the more expensive and less easily sealed quartz ampules at these lower temperatures, and the metals and metalloids are not as impacted by oxide coatings that inhibit sohd-state reactions with more active metals. These lower temperatures may allow access to kinetic products, such as trinuclear clusters, instead of thermodynamic products. 

The 252(]f.pp) niajj spectrum of metal halides and oxides consists of a family cluster ions of these compounds extending to over mIz 10000, produced by the ejection of small domains of the crystal lattice in the region around the fission track. In addition, cluster ions are also observed that do not correlate with the composition of the crystal lattice, indicating that some of the cluster ions are involved in gas phase reactions in the desorption plume. One of the unique applications of 252(]f.pj) jg elucidation of the composition of large transition metal cluster compounds with values approaching 10. ... 

The principal focus of interest has moved toward the study of what may be termed controlled aggregation, that it to say reactions in which transition-metal cluster carbonyls of lower nuclearity are extended by the controlled addition of one or more metal atoms. For example, salts of [Fe5C(CO)i4] will react with /ac-[M(CO)3(NCMe>3] (M=Cr, Mo, W) to form [MFesCCCOh,] -, which is oxidized by iron(ni) to the neutral [MFe4C(CO)xe]. The metal atoms that can be added to the FesC-cluster in this way from different precursors include Cu, Fe, Ir, Ni, Pd, and Rh. The simple addition and subtraction of metal at(xns... 

The conversion of hydroperoxide/peroxide to superoxide is a one-electron redox reaction and requires the presence of transition metals having accessible multiple oxidation states as in biological iron or manganese clusters (e.g., Fe(II, III, IV) clusters of monooxygenase or the Mn(II, HI, IV) clusters of photosystems). Ti is usually not reduced at ambient temperatures. The various possibilities that could facilitate the transformation of hydroperoxo/peroxo to superoxo species are as follows ... 

The reactions of MeOH with some transition metal oxide cluster anions [M O J, where M = Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu n = 1,2 x = 2—4, have been studied (254). The [M03] anions were unreactive toward MeOH, unlike [Nb03]. The addition of the hydrogen molecule to the other cluster anions was the common reaction yielding the following transformations,... 

---