Bridging Homogeneous and Heterogeneous Catalysis: Phosphine-Functionalized Metal-Organic Frameworks

Phosphine-functionalized metal-organic frameworks (P-MOFs) as an emerging class of coordination polymers, have provided novel opportunities for the development of heterogeneous catalysts. Yet, compared with the ubiquitous phosphine systems in homogeneous catalysis, heterogenization of phosphines in MOFs is still at its early stage. In this Minireview, we summarize the synthetic strategies, characterization and catalytic reactions based on the P-MOFs reported in literature. In particular, various catalytic reactions are discussed in detail in terms of phosphine ligand structure-function relationship, including the potential obstacles for future development. Finally, we discuss the possible solutions, including new types of reactions and techniques as the perspectives for the development of P-MOF catalysts, highlighting the opportunities and challenges.

The chemistry of phosphines in constrained, well-defined microenvironments

Developments in the confinement of phosphines within micro- or nano-environments are explored. Phosphines are ubiquitous across metal coordination chemistry and underpin some of the most famous homogeneous transition metal catalysts. Constraining phosphines within confined environments influences not only their behaviour but also that of their metal complexes. Notable examples include the use of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) or metal-organic cages (MOCs) to support phosphines which demonstrate how the microenvironment within such constructs leads to reactivity modification. The development of phosphine confinement is explored and parallels are drawn with related constrained macrocyclic systems and mechanically interlocked molecules. The review concludes by identifying areas that remain a challenge and those that will provide new avenues for research.

Keep it tight: a crucial role of bridging phosphine ligands in the design and optical properties of multinuclear coinage metal complexes

Copper subgroup metal ions in the +1 oxidation state are classical candidates for aggregation via non-covalent metal-metal interactions, which are supported by a number of bridging ligands. The bridging phosphines, soft donors with a relatively labile coordination to coinage metals, serve as convenient and essential components of the ligand environment that allow for efficient self-assembly of discrete polynuclear aggregates. Simultaneously, accessible and rich modification of the organic spacer of such P-donors has been used to generate many fascinating structures with attractive photoluminescent behavior. In this work we consider the development of di- and polynuclear complexes of M(i) (M = Cu, Ag, Au) and their photophysical properties, focusing on the effect of phosphine bridging ligands, their flexibility and denticity.

Self-assembly of cuprous iodide cluster-based calix[4]resorcinarenes and photocatalytic properties

Cluster-based complexes 1 and 2 with [Cu6I5] and [Cu8I8] polynuclear motifs were constructed via a conformation-adaptive self-assembly strategy, respectively. Two Cu(i) complexes exhibited photocatalytic activity to the CuAAC reaction in water solution.

A Versatile Approach to Access Trimetallic Complexes Based on Trisphosphinite Ligands

A straightforward method for the preparation of trisphosphinite ligands in one step, using only commercially available reagents (1,1,1-tris(4-hydroxyphenyl)ethane and chlorophosphines) is described. We have made use of this approach to prepare a small family of four trisphosphinite ligands of formula [CH3C{(C6H4OR2)3], where R stands for Ph (1a), Xyl (1b, Xyl = 2,6-Me2-C6H3), iPr (1c), and Cy (1d). These polyfunctional phosphinites allowed us to investigate their coordination chemistry towards a range of late transition metal precursors. As such, we report here the isolation and full characterization of a number of Au(I), Ag(I), Cu(I), Ir(III), Rh(III) and Ru(II) homotrimetallic complexes, including the structural characterization by X-ray diffraction studies of six of these compounds. We have observed that the flexibility of these trisphosphinites enables a variety of conformations for the different trimetallic species.

Sulfate Donor Based Dinuclear Heteroleptic Triple-Stranded Helicates from Sulfite and Ditopic Nitrogen Donor Ligands and Their Transformation to Dinuclear Homoleptic Double-Stranded Mesocates

Sulfate donor based supramolecular coordination complexes [{ fac-Re(CO)₃}(μ-SO₄)(L ⁿ)₂{ fac-Re(CO)₃}] (1-3) were obtained using ditopic N donors (L ⁿ; n = 1-3), NaHSO₃, and Re₂(CO)₁₀ in a one-pot, multicomponent, coordination-driven self-assembly approach, in which SO₃^2- becomes oxidized to SO₄^2- during the reaction and acts as a building framework. Complexes 1-3 were characterized using IR, ESI-TOF-MS, and ¹H NMR spectroscopy. The structures of complexes 1-3 were confirmed using single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. The transformation of the dinuclear heteroleptic triple-stranded helicate to the dinuclear homoleptic double-stranded mesocate [{Re(CO)₃Cl}₂(L ⁿ)₂] (L ⁿ = L¹, L², L³; 4a-6a) was achieved by the addition of BaCl₂. The direct treatment of Re(CO)₅X (X = Cl, Br) with L¹/L²/L³ yielded the dinuclear homoleptic double-stranded helicates [{Re(CO)₃X}₂ (L ⁿ)₂] (4b-6b and 7-9).

Utilization of a Nonemissive Triphosphine Ligand to Construct a Luminescent Gold(I)-Box That Undergoes Mechanochromic Collapse into a Helical Complex

Luminescent gold(I) complexes ([Au₆(Triphos)₄Cl](PF₆)₅·2(CH₃C₆H₅), [Au₆(Triphos)₄Cl](AsF₆)₅·8(CH₃C₆H₅), and [Au₆(Triphos)₄Cl](SbF₆)₅·7(CH₃C₆H₅) where Triphos = bis(2-diphenylphosphinoethyl)phenylphosphine) with a boxlike architecture have been prepared and crystallographically characterized. A chloride ion resides at the center of the box with two of the six gold(I) ions nearby. Mechanical grinding of blue luminescent crystals containing the cation, [Au₆(Triphos)₄Cl]⁵⁺, results in their conversion into amorphous solids with green emission that contain the bridged helicate cation, [μ-Cl{Au₃(Triphos)₂}₂]⁵⁺. A mechanism of the mechanochromic transformation is proposed. The structures of the blue-emitting helicate, [Au₃(Triphos)₂](CF₃SO₃)₃·4(CH₃C₆H₅)·H₂O, and the green-emitting bridged-helicate, [μ-Cl{Au₃(Triphos)₂}₂](PF₆)₅·3CH₃OH have been determined by single crystal X-ray diffraction.

Selective formation of a two-dimensional coordination polymer based on a tridentate phospholane ligand and gold(i)

The tridentate phosphine ligand 1,3,5-tris[(E)-(4-phospho-lano-2,6-diethyl)styryl]benzene reacts with [AuCl(tht)] independent of the stoichiometry employed with selective formation of a 2D coordination polymer (ratio 1 : 1) with gold(i) in a trigonal-planar [3 + 1] coordination geometry.

Gelation of Luminescent Supramolecular Cages and Transformation to Crystals with Trace-Doped-Enhancement Luminescence

Supramolecular gels with hierarchical order and complexity have been assembled. The gels contain well-defined Ag₄L₂ luminescent supramolecular cages as cores, which are cross-linked via Ag-P coordination bonding. The resulting gels are highly luminescent and exhibit rich stimuli-responsive behaviors toward mechanical and chemical (nitroexplosive and anions) stimuli. The gels could be transformed to highly luminescent crystal materials upon addition of halogen anions, in which only traces of lumiphor are accommodated in a host crystal matrix.

Rhenium(I)-Based Monocyclic and Bicyclic Phosphine Oxide-Coordinated Supramolecular Complexes

Neutral, flexible ditopic phosphine (P-P) or phosphine oxide (O=P-P=O) donors, rigid anionic bis-chelating oxygen donors, and Re₂(CO)₁₀ were used to assemble ten phosphine oxide (P=O)-donor-based neutral monocyclic M₂LL'-, bicyclic M₄L₂L″-, and bicyclic M₄LL'₂-type supramolecular coordination complexes (SCCs). A soft ditopic phosphine donor was transformed into a hard ditopic phosphine oxide donor, during the formation of the cyclic complexes 1-3, 5-6, and 9-10. Complexes 4, 7, and 8 were obtained using a hard P=O donor ligand. These SCCs were characterized using elemental analysis, FTIR, NMR, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. The absorption properties of 1-8 were studied using absorption UV-vis spectroscopic methods, and the results were analyzed using theoretical calculations. The results revealed that the neutral P=O donor significantly influenced the photophysical properties by enhancing the absorption coefficient in the visible region.

A luminescent silver–phosphine tetragonal cage based on tetraphenylethylene

A phosphine-based tetragonal cage emits strong fluorescence both in dilute solutions and in aggregated states, showing response towards anions/olefin compounds.

Self-Assembled Cyclophane-Type Copper(I) Complexes of 2,4,6-Tris(diphenylphosphino)-1,3,5-triazine and Their Catalytic Application

The triazine-based trisphosphine, 2,4,6-tris(diphenylphosphino)-1,3,5-triazine (1) was prepared in improved yield by reacting cyanuric chloride with 3 equiv of trimethylsilyldiphenylphosphine. The solid-state structure of 1 showed short intermolecular P···P contacts of 3.362 Å, which is significantly shorter than the sum of the van der Waals radii of phosphorus atoms (3.6 Å). The reaction of 2,4,6-tris(diphenylphosphino)-1,3,5-triazine (1) with copper(I) salts in a 2:3 molar ratio yielded various cyclophane-type complexes in quantitative yield. The solid-state structures of these clusters have been found to depend on the size of the halide ions, the solvent employed, and the reaction conditions. Copper(I) chloride formed a monomeric metallocyclophane, whereas copper(I) bromide and copper(I) iodide derivatives preferred dimeric and 1D-polymeric structures, respectively. The tricationic complexes derived from Cu(I) ion and 2,4,6-tris(diphenylphosphino)-1,3,5-triazine also adopted monomeric metallocyclophane structures. These complexes have been employed in the A(3) coupling reaction under microwave irradiation. The copper(I) iodide derivative showed excellent catalytic efficiency.

Metallophilicity-assisted assembly of phosphine-based cage molecules

A family of supramolecular cage molecules has been obtained via self-assembly of the phosphine-gold coordination complexes following an aurophilicity-driven aggregation approach. Use of the di- (PP) or tridentate (PPP) phosphine ligands Pn (n = 2, 3) with rigid polyaromatic backbones leads to clean formation of the coordination Pn(Au(tht))n(n+) species, sequential treatment of which with H2O/NEt3 and excess of H2NBu(t) gives the finite 3D structures of two major types. The cylindrical-like hexametallic cages [(PPAu2)3(μ3-NBu(t))2](2+) are based on the diphosphines PP = 1,4-bis(diphenylphosphino)benzene (1), 4,4'-bis(diphenylphosphino)biphenyl (2), 4,4"-bis(diphenylphosphino)terphenyl (3), while the triphosphine PPP (1,3,5-tris(diphenylphosphinophenyl)benzene) produces a tetrahedral dodecagold complex [(PPPAu3)4(μ3-NBu(t))4](4+) (4). The cages 1-4 have been studied using the ESI-MS and (1)H, (31)P NMR spectroscopy, and the crystal structures of 1 and 4 were determined by an X-ray diffraction study. The NMR spectroscopic investigations showed that cylindrical complexes 1-3 undergo twisting-like interconversion of the helical P ↔ M isomers in solution, while 4 is a stereochemically rigid compound retaining its axially chiral architecture. The difference in dynamic behavior was rationalized using computational studies with density functional methods.

A one-pot diastereoselective self assembly of C-stereogenic copper(I) diphosphine clusters

C-chirogenic diphosphine-based clusters with 8-membered "chairlike" Cu4Cl4L2 and 12-membered "drumlike" Cu6Cl6L3 (L = diphosphine) frameworks were prepared in one-pot syntheses from chiral diphosphines, which were generated in situ via the double hydrophosphination reaction in excellent enantio- and diastereoselectivity. Excellent control over the final molecular architecture of the cluster (drum vs chair) could be achieved by the judicious selection of the source of the copper atoms employed in the synthetic protocol. Each cluster was characterized by single-crystal X-ray crystallography, (1)H, (13)C, and (31)P{(1)H} NMR spectroscopy. The synthesized clusters were found to exhibit catalytic activity in the hydroboration reaction of α,β-unsaturated enones with excellent yields albeit with low enantioselectivity.