Low-Pressure Hydrogenation of Carbon Dioxide Catalyzed by an Iron Pincer Complex Exhibiting Noble Metal Activity

Pyrrole-based new diphosphines: Pd and Ni complexes bearing the PNP pincer ligand

A new class of diphosphine PNP pincer ligand, 2,5-bis(diphenylphosphinomethyl)pyrrole 2, was synthesized by the reaction between Ph2PH and 2,5-bis(dimethylaminomethyl)pyrrole in 90% yield. The analogous reaction of Ph2PH with 1,9-bis(dimethylaminomethyl)diphenyldipyrrolylmethane readily afforded a PNNP type diphosphine ligand, 1,9-bis(diphenylphosphinomethyl)diphenyldipyrrolylmethane 5 in 92% yield. These phosphine compounds were oxidized with H2O2 and S8 to give the corresponding phosphoryl and thiophosphoryl compounds 6-9 in very good yields. The reaction of the PNP pincer ligand 2 with [PdCl2(PhCN)2] in the presence of Et3N afforded the mononuclear Pd(II) complex, [PdCl{C4H2N-2,5-(CH2PPh2)2-κ(3)PNP}] 10 in 87% yield. Conversely, treatment of 2 with [PdCl2(PhCN)2] in the absence of Et3N gave the dinuclear Pd(II) complex [Pd2Cl4{μ-C4H3N-2,5-(CH2PPh2)2-κ(2)PP}2], the structure which is proposed based on the spectroscopic data. When 2 was treated with Pd(0) precursor [Pd2(dba)3]·CHCl3 the dinuclear Pd(I) complex [Pd2{μ-C4H2N-2,5-(CH2PPh2)2-κ(2)PN,κ(1)P}2], 12, was obtained in 23% yield. The formation of complex 12 is solvent dependent, which transforms into complex 10 in CDCl3 as studied by variable temperature (1)H and (31)P NMR methods. Treatment of 2 with [Ni(OAc)2]·4H2O gave the mononuclear Ni(II) pincer complex [Ni(OAc){C4H2N-2,5-(CH2PPh2)2-κ(3)PNP}], 13, which upon treatment with an excess of LiCl or LiBr or KI afforded the respective halide ion substituted Ni(II) complexes, [NiX{C4H2N-2,5-(CH2PPh2)2-κ(3)PNP}] (X = Cl, Br, and I), 14-16, in very good yields. The structures of 5, 2,5-bis(diphenylphosphorylmethyl)pyrrole 6, 10, 12, and 14-16 were determined by the single crystal X-ray diffraction method. In the structure of 12, two short contacts between the diagonally positioned Pd and P atoms are observed. To understand these weak interactions, density functional theory (DFT) calculations were done and an interaction MO diagram is presented.

Aldehyde binding through reversible C-C coupling with the pincer ligand upon alcohol dehydrogenation by a PNP-ruthenium catalyst

Primary alcohol dehydrogenation by a PNP-Ru(II) catalyst was probed by low-temperature NMR experiments. Facile dehydrogenation occurred at -30 °C, but the resulting aldehydes were not found in solution, as they were trapped by the catalyst through a new mode of metal-ligand cooperation involving Ru-O coordination and an unusual, highly reversible C-C coupling with the PNP pincer ligand.

Selective electrocatalytic reduction of CO2 to formate by water-stable iridium dihydride pincer complexes

Iridium dihydride complexes supported by PCP-type pincer ligands rapidly insert CO(2) to yield κ(2)-formate monohydride products in THF. In acetonitrile/water mixtures, these complexes become efficient and selective catalysts for electrocatalytic reduction of CO(2) to formate. Electrochemical and NMR spectroscopic studies have provided mechanistic details and structures of key intermediates.

Unexpected direct reduction mechanism for hydrogenation of ketones catalyzed by iron PNP pincer complexes

The hydrogenation of ketones catalyzed by 2,6-bis(diisopropylphosphinomethyl)pyridine (PNP)-ligated iron pincer complexes was studied using the range-separated and dispersion-corrected ωB97X-D functional in conjunction with the all-electron 6-31++G(d,p) basis set. A validated structural model in which the experimental isopropyl groups were replaced with methyl groups was employed for the computational study. Using this simplified model, the calculated total free energy barrier of a previously postulated mechanism with the insertion of ketone into the Fe-H bond is far too high to account for the observed catalytic reaction. Calculation results reveal that the solvent alcohol is not only a stabilizer of the dearomatized intermediate but also more importantly an assistant catalyst for the formation of trans-(PNP)Fe(H)(2)(CO), the actual catalyst for hydrogenation of ketones. A direct reduction mechanism, which features the solvent-assisted formation of a trans dihydride complex trans-(PNP)Fe(H)(2)(CO), direct transfer of hydride to acetophenone from trans-(PNP)Fe(H)(2)(CO) for the formation of a hydrido alkoxo complex, and direct H(2) cleavage by hydrido alkoxo without the participation of the pincer ligand for the regeneration of trans-(PNP)Fe(H)(2)(CO), was predicted.

Efficient hydrogenation of biomass-derived cyclic di-esters to 1,2-diols

The unprecedented homogeneous hydrogenation of cyclic di-esters, in particular biomass-derived glycolide and lactide, to the corresponding 1,2-diols is catalyzed by Ru(II) PNN (1) and Ru(II) CNN (2) pincer complexes under mild hydrogen pressure and (in the case of 1) neutral conditions. No racemization was observed when a chiral di-ester was used.