Synthesis and X-ray Structures of

Cyclopentadienyl Complexes of the Alkaline Earths in Light of the Periodic Trends

The electron-rich cyclopentadienyl and the analogous indenyl and fluorenyl ligands (collectively denoted here as Cp') have been impactful in stabilizing electron-deficient metal centers including the highly electropositive alkaline earths. Being in the s-block, the group 2 metals follow a major periodic variation in their atomic and ionic properties which is reflected in those Cp' compounds. This article presents an overview of this class of compounds for all the five metals from beryllium to barium (radium is excluded for its radioactivity), highlighting their systematic variation.

Di(indenyl)beryllium

The bonding in beryllocene, [BeCp₂ ], took decades to establish, owing to its unexpected mixed hapticity structure (i.e., [Be(η⁵ -Cp)(η¹ -Cp)]). Beryllium complexes containing the indenyl ligand, which is a close relative of the cyclopentadienyl anion, but which is also known to exhibit its own bonding peculiarities (e.g., facile η⁵ ⇄ η³ shifts), have remained unknown. Standard metathetical approaches to their synthesis (e.g., with K[Ind'] + BeX₂ in an ether solvent) give rise to intractable oils from which nothing identifiable can be isolated. In contrast, mechanochemical preparation, involving the solvent-free grinding of BeBr₂ and potassium indenides, leads to the production of discrete (indenyl)beryllium complexes, including [Be(C₉ H₇ )₂ ] (1) and [Be{1,3-(SiMe₃ )₂ C₉ H₅ }Br] (2). The former displays η⁵ /η¹ -coordinated ligands in the solid state, but DFT calculations indicate that an η⁵ /η⁵ -conformation is less than 5 kcal mol^-1 higher in energy.

Stack by Stack: From the Free Cyclopentadienylgermanium Cation Via Heterobimetallic Main-Group Sandwiches to Main-Group Sandwich Coordination Polymers

Heterobimetallic cationic sandwich complexes [M(μ-Cp)M'Cp]+ of group 13 (M=Ga, In) and group 14 (M'=Ge, Sn) elements have been prepared as [WCA]- salts (WCA=Al(ORF )4 ; ORF =OC(CF3 )3 ). Their molecular structures include free apical gallium or indium atoms. The sandwich complexes were formed in the reactions of [M(HMB)]+ [WCA]- (HMB=C6 Me6 ) with the free metallocenes [M'Cp2 ]. Their structures are related to known stannocene and stannocenium salts; the unprecedented germanium analogues, namely the free germanocenium cation [GeCp]+ and the corresponding triple-decker complex cation [CpGe(μ-Cp)GeCp]+ , are described herein. By variation of the reaction conditions, these sandwich complexes can be transformed into the group 13/14 mixed cationic coordination polymer [{In(HMB)(μ-SnCp2 )}n ][WCA]n . This polymeric chain motif was also successfully replicated by the synthesis of complexes [{Ga/In(HMB)(μ-FeCp2 )}n ][WCA]n containing FeCp2 as a bridging ligand.

Cyclopalladation of the Prochiral (Di-tert-butyl)(diphenylmethyl)phosphine: Kinetic Lability of the Corresponding (+)-Phosphapalladacyclic Pd−C Bond and the Reluctance of the Phosphine to Bind in a Monodentate Fashion

The ortho palladation of prochiral (di-tert-butyl)(diphenylmethyl)phosphine proceeded readily to give rise to the dimeric complex, di-mu-chlorobis{[(phenyl)(di-tert-butylphosphino)methyl]phenyl-C2, P}dipalladium(II). The (S,S)-(+)-dimer was subsequently obtained by optical resolution with sodium (S)-prolinate. The absolute configuration of the optically resolved (+)-dimer was concluded from the X-ray diffraction studies of the derivatized O,O-acetylacetonate complex. The availability of the (+)-dimer is crucial to the study of the properties of the Pd-C bond. The phosphapalladacycle Pd-C bond exhibited a remarkable thermodynamic stability. It could not be permanently ruptured to give rise to the eta1-P monodentate even in a refluxing acetone solution containing concentrated hydrochloric acid. Instead, the phosphine was noted to fluctuate between the ring closed and opened states via the reversible Pd-C bond cleavage/formation under this condition. Inevitably, this resulted in the racemization of the five-membered organopalladium ring structure. In contrast, such bond cleavage was not observed at room temperature in the absence of HCl. In fact, the phosphine was observed to readily ortho palladate even under conditions not favorable to cyclopalladation. Indeed, the difficulty of isolating the phosphine as a simple eta1-P monodentate coordination complex was further noted by its lack of reactivity toward the N,N-dimethyl-1-(1'naphthyl)ethylaminate palladacycle mu-chloro dimer. Only by enhancing the Lewis acidity of the palladacycle in the form of the positively charged bis(acetonitrile) complex could the phosphine be encouraged to participate in monodentate eta1-P bonding. Even then, this form of coordination was weak and was only observed by NMR spectroscopy.

Structure and Dynamics of Homoleptic Beryllocenes: A Solid-State9Be and13C NMR Study

The correlation between anisotropic 9Be NMR (quadrupolar and chemical shielding) interactions and the structure and dynamics in [Cp2Be], [Cp2*Be], and [(C5Me4H)2Be] is examined by solid-state 9Be NMR spectroscopy, as well as by ab initio and hybrid density functional theory calculations. The 9Be quadrupole coupling constants in the three compounds correspond well to the relative degrees of spherical ground-state electronic symmetry of the environment about beryllium. Theoretical computations of NMR interaction tensors are in excellent agreement with experimental values and aid in understanding the origins of NMR interaction tensors and their correlation to molecular symmetry. Variable-temperature (VT) 9Be and 13C NMR experiments reveal a highly fluxional structure in the condensed phase of [Cp2Be]. In particular, the pathway by which the Cp rings of [Cp2Be] 'invert' coordination modes is examined in detail using hybrid density functional theory in order to inspect variations of the 9Be NMR interaction tensors. The activation energy for the 'inversion' process is found to be 36.9 kJ mol(-1) from chemical exchange analysis of 13C VT CP/MAS NMR spectra. The low-temperature (ca. -100 degrees C) X-ray crystal structures of all three compounds have been collected and refined, and are in agreement with previously reported structures. In addition, the structure of the same Cp2Be crystal was determined at 20 degrees C and displays features consistent with increased intramolecular motion, supporting observations by 9Be VT NMR spectroscopy.

Synthesis and structural characterization of Be(eta 5-C5Me5)(eta 1-C5Me4H). Evidence for ring-inversion leading to Be(eta 5-C5Me4H)(eta 1-C5Me5)

The mixed-ring beryllocene Be(C5Me5)(C5Me4H), that contains eta 5-C5Me5 and eta 1-C5Me4H rings, the latter bonded to the metal through the CH carbon atom (X-ray crystal structure) reacts at room temperature with CNXyl (Xyl = C6H3-2,6-Me2) to give an iminoacyl product, Be(eta 5-C5Me4H)[C(NXyl)C5Me5] derived from the inverted beryllocene structure Be (eta 5-C5Me4H)(eta 1-C5Me5).