Roland Roesler

Characterization of β-B-Agostic Isomers in Zirconocene Amidoborane Complexes

The reaction of Cp(x)(2)ZrCl(2) (Cp(x) = Cp, Cp*) with ammonia borane in presence of n-butyllithium yielded Cp(2)Zr(Cl)NH(2)BH(3) and Cp(x)(2)Zr(H)NH(2)BH(3). These derivatives are isoelectronic with the ethyl zirconocene chloride and hydride, respectively, and feature a chelating amidoborane ligand coordinating through a Zr-N bond and a Zr-H-B bridge. In solution, each of the complexes consists of an equilibrium mixture of two isomers differing in the orientation of the amidoborane ligand with respect to the Zr-X bond (X = H, Cl), while in the solid state, only one isomer was observed. Such isomers have not been characterized for any metal complexes containing the isoelectronic beta-agostic ethyl ligand or any other agostic alkyl group.

Synthesis, structural characterization and reactivity of the amino borane 1-(NPh2)-2-[B(C6F5)2]C6H4

Abstract The bright red title compound 1 was synthesized from (2-lithiophenyl)diphenylamine and bis(pentafluorophenyl)boron chloride. Its reactions with small acids like H2O and HCl proceeded easily giving zwitterionic compounds. For 1 and its water adduct 2 the crystal structures were determined, the latter featuring an ammonium borate structure containing a short intramolecular hydrogen bond bridge. Treatment of 1 with Jutzis acid, [H(OEt2)2][B(C6F5)4], did not result in protonation of the nitrogen, but reaction of 1 with LiH in the presence of 12-crown-4, led to the isolation of the aminoborate [1-(Ph2N)-2-{B(H)(C6F5)2}C6H4][Li(12-crown-4)] (3). Borohydride 3 reacted with Jutzis acid to regenerate 1 and liberate hydrogen.

N-Heterocyclic Carbenes with Inorganic Backbones: Electronic Structures and Ligand Properties

The electronic structures of known N-heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs) with boron, nitrogen, and phosphorus backbones are examined using quantum chemical methods and compared to the experimental results and to the computational data obtained for a classical carbon analogue, imidazol-2-ylidene. The sigma-donor and pi-acceptor abilities of the studied NHCs in selected transition-metal complexes are evaluated using a variety of approaches such as energy and charge decomposition analysis, as well as calculated acidity constants and carbonyl stretching frequencies. The study shows that the introduction of selected heteroatoms into the NHC backbone generally leads to stronger metal-carbene bonds and therefore improves the ligand properties of these systems. The backdonation of pi-electron density from the metal to the ligand is found to be strong in complexes of the studied NHCs with group 11 metals, where it constitutes up to nearly 35% of the total orbital interaction energy. The ligand properties of the aluminum analogues of some of the reported NHCs with boron backbones are also assessed.

The influence of electron delocalization upon the stability and structure of potential N-heterocyclic carbene precursors with 1,3-diaryl-imidazolidine-4,5-dione skeletons

Targeting N-heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs) with increased π-acceptor character featuring N-fluorophenyl substituents, the molecular 2-chloro-1,3-bis(fluorophenyl)imidazolidine-4,5-diones (1a–c) were isolated from the condensation of the corresponding formamidine with oxalyl chloride. These formal adducts of NHCs with hydrogen chloride demonstrated reactivity akin to that of alkyl halides: 1,3,1′,3′-tetrakis(2,6-dimethylphenyl)-[2,2′]diimidazolidinyl-4,5,4′,5′-tetraone (2b) was formed via the reductive coupling of 1b, while 1,3-bis(2,6-diisopropylphenyl)-4,5-dioxoimidazolidin-2-yl acetate (3c) was formed as the result of a metathesis reaction with mercury(II) acetate. Chloride abstraction resulted in the formation of imidazolium-4,5-dione salts (4a–c) that decomposed rapidly, except in the case of the kinetically-stabilized 1,3-bis(2,6-diisopropylphenyl)imidazolium-4,5-dione hexafluorophosphate 4c. All imidazolium-4,5-dione hexafluorophosphate salts decomposed to neutral 2-fluoro-1,3-bis(aryl)imidazolidine-4,5-diones (5a–c) via fluoride abstraction. 2-Methoxy-1,3-di(aryl)imidazolidine-4,5-diones (6a–c) were also prepared and they failed to undergo thermolysis and yield the free NHCs. Computational analyses revealed that the instability of NHCs with an oxalamide skeleton, as well as that of imidazolium-4,5-diones, results from a π-framework which extends over both carbonyl moieties and gives rise to a very low energy LUMO, rendering the compounds in question highly electrophilic.

Ammonia Activation by a Nickel NCN‐Pincer Complex featuring a Non‐Innocent N‐Heterocyclic Carbene: Ammine and Amido Complexes in Equilibrium

A Ni(0)-NCN pincer complex featuring a six-membered N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) central platform and amidine pendant arms was synthesized by deprotonation of its Ni(II) precursor. It retained chloride in the square-planar coordination sphere of nickel and was expected to be highly susceptible to oxidative addition reactions. The Ni(0) complex rapidly activated ammonia at room temperature, in a ligand-assisted process where the carbene carbon atom played the unprecedented role of proton acceptor. For the first time, the coordinated (ammine) and activated (amido) species were observed together in solution, in a solvent-dependent equilibrium. A structural analysis of the Ni complexes provided insight into the highly unusual, non-innocent behavior of the NHC ligand.

Competition of silene/silylene chemistry with free radical chain reactions using 1-methylsilacyclobutane in the hot-wire chemical vapor deposition process.

The gas-phase reaction chemistry of using 1-methylsilacyclobutane (MSCB) in the hot-wire chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process has been investigated by studying the decomposition of MSCB on a heated tungsten filament and subsequent gas-phase reactions in a reactor. Three pathways exist to decompose MSCB on the filament to form ethene/methylsilene, propene/methylsilylene, and methyl radicals. The activation energies for forming propene and methyl radical, respectively, are determined to be 68.7 ± 1.3 and 46.7 ± 2.5 kJ·mol(-1), which demonstrates the catalytic nature of the decomposition. The secondary gas-phase reactions in the hot-wire CVD reactor are characterized by the competition between a free radical chain reaction and the cycloaddition of silene reactive species produced either from the primary decomposition of MSCB on the filament or the isomerization of silylene species. At lower filament temperatures of 1000-1100 °C and short reaction time (t ≤ 15 min), the free radical chain reaction is equally important as the silene chemistry. With increasing filament temperature and reaction time, silene chemistry predominates.

Tuning the electronic properties of cyclopentadienyl analogs with CB2N2 frameworks: 1,2-diphenyl-1,2-diaza-3,5-diborolyl ligands and their alkali metal salts

Two heterocyclic cyclopentadienyl analogs with a CB2N2 skeleton, 4-methyl-1,2,3,5-tetraphenyl-1,2-diaza-3,5-diborolidine and 4-methyl-3,5-dimethylamino-1,2-diphenyl-1,2-diaza-3,5-diborolidine were prepared through cyclocondensation of the corresponding 1,1-bis(organochloroboryl)ethane with 1,2-diphenylhydrazine. The former diazadiborolidine featured a cyclopentadiene-like structure with short B-N bonds and a planar ring framework, while in the latter the B-N bonds were noticeably longer and the ring framework was considerably folded as a result of the interaction between boron and the electron donating NMe2 groups. The dimethylamino substituted diazadiborolidine could not be deprotonated due to the reduced acidity of the ring proton, however, the B-phenylated analog was easily deprotonated and the lithium, sodium and potassium 1,2-diaza-3,5-diborolyls were isolated and structurally characterized. The solid state structures of the lithium and sodium salts were similar, with an eta(1)-coordinated pi ligand and three THF molecules completing the coordination sphere of the metal. The potassium salt featured a highly unusual mono-dimensional polymeric structure with the metal pi-coordinated by the CB2N2 ligand and two of the phenyl groups on boron and nitrogen, and sigma-coordinated by one THF molecule.

mu-eta^3:eta^4-Lithiocene and eta^3:eta^3-zincocene incorporating 1,2-diaza-3,5-diborolyl, a cyclopentadienyl analog

A heterocyclic cyclopentadienyl analog containing only one carbon atom in the ring was prepared and a polymeric lithiocene and a monomeric zincocene containing this novel ligand have been isolated and crystallographically characterized.

Assembly of a planar, tricyclic B4N8 framework with s-indacene structure

A neutral, formally 16pi-electron, tricyclic tetrahydrazidotetraborane was obtained in a two-step procedure involving self-assembly of a dilithiodiborate with B(4)N(8) framework and subsequent oxidation of the phenylborate moieties to boranes and biphenyl using Fe(II) as an oxidant.