Diphenylacetylene stabilised alkali-metal nickelates: synthesis, structure and catalytic applications

Whilst low-valent nickelates have recently been proposed as intermediates in Ni-catalysed reactions involving polar organometallics, their isolation and characterisation is often challenging due to their high sensitivity and reactivity. Advancing the synthetic, spectroscopic and structural insights of these heterobimetallic systems, here we report a new family of alkyne supported alkali-metal nickelates of the formula Li₄(solv)_n(Ar)₄Ni₂{μ₂:η²,η²-Ph-CC-Ph} (where solv = Et₂O, THF; Ar = Ph, o-Tol, naphthyl, 4-^tBu-C₆H₄) which can be accessed through the combination of Ni(COD)₂, Ph-CC-Ph and the relevant lithium aryl in a 2 : 1 : 4 ratio. Demonstrating the versatility of this approach, the sodium and potassium nickelates can also be accessed when using PhNa or via alkali-metal exchange with AMO^tBu (AM = Na, K). When employing bulky or structurally constrained aryl-lithiums, mononickel complexes of the formula Li₂(solv)_n(Ar)₂Ni{η²-Ph-CC-Ph} are instead obtained, highlighting the structural diversity of alkali-metal nickelates bearing alkyne ligands. Expanding the catalytic potential of these systems, their ability to promote the catalytic cyclotrimerisation of diphenylacetylene to hexaphenylbenzene was explored, with mononickel compounds bearing electron rich aryl-substituents displaying the best performance.

Synthesis and structural characterization of alkali metal arsinoamides

The aminoarsane Mes2AsN(H)Ph was prepared from Mes2AsCl and aniline in good yields. Deprotonation of Mes2AsN(H)Ph with suitable alkali metal bases resulted in the corresponding alkali metal derivatives. Thus, reaction of Mes2AsN(H)Ph with nBuLi, NaN(SiMe3)2, or KH gave the metal complexes [(Mes2AsNPh){Li(OEt2)2}], [(Mes2AsNPh){Na(OEt2)}]2, and [(Mes2AsNPh){K(THF)}]2. These are the first metal complexes ligated by an arsinoamide. All solid-state structures were established by single crystal X-ray diffraction. The lithium compounds form a monomer in the solid-state, whereas the sodium and the potassium derivatives are dimers. In the dimeric compounds intra- and intermolecular π-interaction of the aromatic rings with the metal atoms is observed.

Inserted products of lithium silylquinolylamide dimers [{8-(2-R-C9H5N)N(Me3Si)}Li·OEt2]2 (R = H or Me) with dimethylcyanamide and their reactive derivatives with metal halides

Li, Ti, Fe and Co complexes bearing 8-quinolyl-linked guanidinate ligands have been synthesized and characterized. The structures of all complexes show various coordinative modes with the same multi-dentate ligands.

β-Diiminato ligand (L) transformations in reactions of KL with PI3and I2[L = {N(C6H3Pri2-2,6)C(H)}2CPh]

The reaction of the potassium beta-diiminate KL (L = [{N(Ar)C(H)}(2)CPh](-); Ar = C(6)H(3)Pr(i)(2)-2,6) with PI(3) unexpectedly produced a phosphenium salt of the intermolecularly C,C-coupled ligand [P(I){N(Ar)CH}(2)C(C(6)H(4)-4)C(Ph)(CH[double bond, length as m-dash]NAr)(2)](+)[I(3)](-), while an intramolecularly N,N-coupled salt [N[upper bond 1 start](Ar)C(H)C(Ph)C(H)N[upper bond 1 end](Ar)](+)[I(5)](-) was isolated from KL + I(2).

Base-catalysed asymmetric hydroamination/cyclisation of aminoalkenes utilising a dimeric chiral diamidobinaphthyl dilithium salt

A dimeric proline derived diamidobinaphthyl dilithium salt represents the first example of a chiral main group metal based catalyst for asymmetric hydroamination/cyclisation reactions of aminoalkenes.

Co-complexes of ortho-dilithiated thiophenol or 2-trimethylsilylthiophenol with lithiated TMEDA molecules: synthesis, crystal structures and theoretical studies (TMEDA = N,N,N′,N′-tetramethylethylenediamine)

When an excess of nBuLi was used in the ortho-dilithiation of thiophenol or 2-trimethylsilylthiophenol in the presence of TMEDA (TMEDA = N,N,N',N'-tetramethylethylenediamine), deprotonation of TMEDA occurred and crystals of [Li3{(2-S-C6H4)(CH2MeNCH2CH2NMe2)(TMEDA)}]2 (1) or [Li4{(2-S-3-SiMe3-C6H3)(CH2MeNCH2CH2NMe2)2(TMEDA)}] (2) were obtained. Molecular orbital calculations on gas-phase 1 and 2 at the DFT B3LYP/6-31G(d) level reproduce the experimental structures fairly well. In spite of the short Li...Li distances, total electron density representations do not support the existence of Li...Li interactions.