Computational Insights into the Mechanisms of H 2 Activation and H 2 /D 2 Isotope Exchange by Dimolybdenum Tetrasulfide Complexes

Reactant or reagent? Oxidation of H2 at electronically distinct nickel-thiolate sites [Ni2(μ-SR)2]+ and [Ni–SR]+

The chemical bond between a Lewis-acidic metal and a Brønsted/Lewis-basic sulphur donor provides M–S structures with functional properties that are relevant for a variety of processes such as the heterolytic cleavage of H₂.

A capped trigonal pyramidal molybdenum hydrido complex and an unusually mild sulfur-carbon bond cleavage reaction

DFT calculations reveal that a reported molybdenum hydride complex has an unprecedented geometry with the molybdenum in the base of trigonal pyramid defined by three thiolate ligands with a phosphine ligand on the apex and a hydride capping a PS₂ face. This complex reacts with methanol to produce a sulfido complex by a new reaction: the protonation of an ipso carbon of a thiolate ligand by coordinated methanol.