Gerrit W. Fester

Octahedral HSiCl3 and HSiCl2Me adducts with pyridines.

Stable solid adducts of substituted pyridines (Rpy) with HSiCl(3) and HSiCl(2)Me were prepared in high yields under aprotic and anaerobic conditions at room temperature. The octahedral complexes of HSiCl(3) underwent dismutation reactions in polar solvents. In contrast, the HSiCl(2)Me(Rpy)(2) adducts were not susceptible to dismutation under comparable conditions, but they tended to dissociate more easily because of the reduced Lewis acidity of HSiCl(2)Me relative to HSiCl(3). The bonding between silicon and its surrounding ligands is highly ionic, as can be seen from QTAIM and charge distribution analyses. (29)Si CP/MAS spectra in combination with quantum-chemical calculations show that the lowest shielding is along the Cl-Si-Cl axis. The other two components of the shielding tensor are oriented along the N-Si-N and H-Si-Cl/Me axes. It is known that many reactions of (hydrido)chlorosilanes are catalyzed by pyridine bases. Therefore, the results presented here provide a basis for better control of these reactions, especially chlorine substitution and hydrosilylation.

Octahedral Adducts of Dichlorosilane with Substituted Pyridines: Synthesis, Reactivity and a Comparison of Their Structures and 29Si NMR Chemical Shifts

H(2)SiCl(2) and substituted pyridines (Rpy) form adducts of the type all-trans-SiH(2*)Cl(2)2 Rpy. Pyridines with substituents in the 4- (CH(3), C(2)H(5), H(2)C=CH, (CH(3))(3)C, (CH(3))(2)N) and 3-positions (Br) give the colourless solids 1 a-f. The reaction with pyrazine results in the first 1:2 adduct (2) of H(2)SiCl(2) with an electron-deficient heteroaromatic compound. Treatment of 1 d and 1 e with CHCl(3) yields the ionic complexes [SiH(2)(Rpy)(4)]Cl(2*)6 CHCl(3) (Rpy=4-methylpyridine (3 d) and 4-ethylpyridine (3 e)). All products are investigated by single-crystal X-ray diffraction and (29)Si CP/MAS NMR spectroscopy. The Si atoms are found to be situated on centres of symmetry (inversion, rotation), and the Si-N distances vary between 193.3 pm for 1 c (4-(dimethylamino)pyridine complex) and 197.3 pm for 2. Interestingly, the pyridine moieties are coplanar and nearly in an eclipsed position with respect to the SiH(2) units, except for the ethyl-substituted derivative 1 e, which shows a more staggered conformation in the solid state. Calculation of the energy profile for the rotation of one pyridine ring indicates two minima that are separated by only 1.2 kJ mol(-1) and a maximum barrier of 12.5 kJ mol(-1). The (29)Si NMR chemical shifts (delta(iso)) range from -145.2 to -152.2 ppm and correlate with the electron density at the Si atoms, in other words with the +I and +M effects of the substituents. Again, compound 1 e is an exception and shows the highest shielding. The bonding situation at the Si atoms and the (29)Si NMR tensor components are analysed by quantum chemical methods at the density functional theory level. The natural bond orbital analysis indicates polar covalent Si-H bonds and very polar Si-Cl bonds, with the highest bond polarisation being observed for the Si-N interaction, which must be considered a donor-acceptor interaction. An analysis of the topological properties of the electron distribution (AIM) suggests a Lewis structure, thereby supporting this bonding situation.

Die rotationsfehlgeordnete Kristallstruktur von Tropyliumbromid C7H7 +Br– / The Rotationally Disordered Crystal Structure of Tropylium Bromide C7H7 +Br−

The crystal structure of tropylium bromide, C7H7+Br−, was solved and refined in space group type R¯3m with rotationally disordered C7 rings. Restraints of identical 1,2- and 1,7-C-C bond lengths as well as identical 1,3- and 1,6-C-C separations within a flat C7H7 moiety were applied. The refinement converged to a regular C7 heptagon with C-C bond lengths of 139.1(1) pm. C7H7+Br− reacts with Mo(CO)3(CH3CN)3 to form C7H7Mo(CO)2Br. Graphical Abstract Die rotationsfehlgeordnete Kristallstruktur von Tropyliumbromid C7H7 +Br– / The Rotationally Disordered Crystal Structure of Tropylium Bromide C7H7 +Br−