Isoprene Polymerization with Pyrazolylimine Cobalt(II) Complexes: Manipulation of 3,4‐Selectivities by Ligand Design and Use of Triphenylphosphine

Enhancing isoprene polymerization with high activity and adjustable monomer enchainment using cyclooctyl-fused iminopyridine iron precatalysts

In this study, a series of structurally rigid cyclooctyl-fused iminopyridine iron complexes, [L2FeCl][FeCl4] and [2L3Fe][Cl][3FeCl4], was synthesized via a one-pot method and investigated as precatalysts in conjunction with methylaluminoxane for isoprene (Ip) polymerization. Combined characterization through FTIR analysis, elemental analysis and single crystal XRD analysis fully verified the structure of these complexes. The most active iron complex, FeH, exhibited a trisligated nature, with its cation adopting an octahedral geometry around the metal center. In contrast, all the other iron complexes (Fe2Me, Fe2Et, Fe2iPr, Fe3Me, Fe2Et,Me) displayed bisligated configurations, with distorted trigonal bipyramidal geometry of cations. During isoprene polymerization, the extent of steric hindrance of the ligand framework exerted a significant impact on catalytic performance. The FeH precatalyst with less steric hindrance demonstrated excellent performance, producing high molecular weight polyisoprenes with conversions exceeding 99% for 4000 equiv. of monomer. Even at very low catalyst loadings, as low as 0.0025 mol% (Fe/Ip), the polymerization of isoprene could proceed smoothly with an exceptionally high activity of 4.0 × 106 gPI (molFe, h)-1. Moreover, this precatalyst exhibited good thermal stability, maintaining high activity levels (typically 105 gPI (molFe, h)-1) across a broad temperature range from -20 °C to 100 °C. Additionally, by adjusting steric substituents and the reaction temperature, the 1,4/3,4 regioselectivity could be modulated from 9/91 to 69/31 while maintaining a high stereoselectivity of cis-1,4 structures (cis/trans: >99/1).

Catalytic Behavior of Cobalt Complexes Bearing Pyridine-Oxime Ligands in Isoprene Polymerization

Several cobalt(II) complexes Co1-Co3 bearing pyridine-oxime ligands (L1 = pyridine-2-aldoxime for Co1; L2 = 6-methylpyridine-2-aldoxime for Co2; L3 = phenyl-2-pyridylketoxime for Co3) and picolinaldehyde O-methyl oxime (L4)-supported Co4 were synthesized and well characterized by FT-IR, mass spectrum and elemental analysis. The single-crystal X-ray diffraction of complex Co2 reveals that the cobalt center of CoCl2 is coordinated with two 6-methylpyridine-2-aldoxime ligands binding with Npyridine and Noxime atoms, which feature a distorted octahedral structure. These Co complexes Co1-Co4 displayed extremely high activity toward isoprene polymerization upon activation with small amount of AlClEt2 in toluene, giving polyisoprene with high activity up to 16.3 × 105 (mol of Co)-1(h)-1. And, the generated polyisoprene displayed high molecular weights and narrow molecular distribution with a cis-1,4-enriched selectivity. The type of cobalt complexes, cocatalyst and reaction temperature all have effects on the polymerization activity but not on the microstructure of polymer.

cis-1,4 Selective Coordination Polymerization of 1,3-Butadiene and Copolymerization with Polar 2-(4-Methoxyphenyl)-1,3-butadiene by Acenaphthene-Based α-Diimine Cobalt Complexes Featuring Intra-Ligand π-π Stacking Interactions

Highly cis-1,4 selective (up to 98%) coordination-insertion polymerization of 1,3-butadiene (BD) has been achieved herein using acenaphthene-based α-diimine cobalt complexes. Due to the presence of intra-ligand π-π stacking interactions, the complexes revealed high thermostability, affording polybutadiene products in high yields. Moreover, all of the obtained polymers possessed a relatively narrow molecular weight distribution as well as high molecular weight (up to 92.2 × 104 Dalton). The molecular weights of the resultant polybutadienes could be finely tuned by varying polymerization parameters, including temperature, Al/Co ratio, etc. Moreover, the copolymerization of butadiene with polar monomer 2-(4-methoxyphenyl)-1,3-butadiene (2-MOPB) was also successfully realized to produce a type of polar cis-1,4 polybutadiene (cis-1,4 content: up to 98.1%) with a range of 2-MOPB content (0.46-1.83%). Water contact angle measurements indicated that the insertion of a polar monomer into a polymer chain could significantly improve the polymer's surface property.

One-pot synthesis of cobalt complexes with 2,6-bis(arylimino)phenoxyl/phenthioxyl ligands and catalysis on isoprene polymerization

Several cobalt complexes supported by 2,6-bis(arylimino)phenoxyl/phenthioxyl ligands κ2N,X-Ar[NXN]CoCl(THF) (1a, X = O, Ar = 2,6-Me2C6H3; 1b, X = O, Ar = 2,6-iPr2C6H3; 2a, X = S, Ar = 2,6-Me2C6H3; 2b, X = S, Ar = 2,6-iPr2C6H3) were synthesized by direct oxygen(sulfur) insertion into the C-Co bond of the mixed-valence cobalt complexes {κ2C,N,η6-Ar[NCN]Co-κN-CoCl(μ-Cl)}2. Crystallization of 1b in the presence of water gave the hydrolysis product 1b'. Treatment of Ar[NCN]Li with dioxygen followed by the addition of CoCl2 afforded the heteroatomic complexes {κ2N,O-Ar[NON]Co(μ-Cl)2Li}2 (3a, Ar = 2,6-Me2C6H3; 3b, Ar = 2,6-iPr2C6H3) or κ2N,O-Ar[NON]Co2Cl2(μ-Cl)2Li(THF)2 (4a, Ar = 2,6-Me2C6H3; 4b, Ar = 2,6-iPr2C6H3) depending on the amount of CoCl2 used. The Co(iii)/Li heterometallic complex 3b' with imino-phenoxyl-amino ligands was formed probably via a redox reaction of 3b. The reactions of Ar[NCN]Li with elemental sulfur and CoCl2 gave κ2N,S-Ar[NSN]Co2Cl2(μ-Cl)2Li(THF)2 (5a, Ar = 2,6-Me2C6H3; 5b, Ar = 2,6-iPr2C6H3) respectively. These complexes were well characterized by FT-IR and elemental analyses, and the molecular structures of 1b', 3b', 4a, and 4b were confirmed by X-ray crystallography. Upon activation with Al2Et3Cl3 in toluene, these complexes showed high activities in isoprene polymerization affording cis-1,4 enriched polymers with a moderate molecular weight (0.85-4.72 × 104 Da).

Synthesis, structural determination, in vitro and in silico biological evaluation of divalent or trivalent cobalt complexes with indomethacin

The interaction of cobalt chloride with the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug indomethacin (Hindo) led to the formation of the polymeric complex [Co(indo-O)2(H2O)2(μ-Cl)]n·n(MeOH·H2O) bearing one chlorido bridge between the cobalt atoms. The presence of the nitrogen-donor co-ligands 2,2'-bipyridine (bipy), 2,2'-bipyridylamine (bipyam), 1,10-phenanthroline (phen) or 1H-imidazole (Himi) resulted in the isolation of complexes [Co2(μ-indo-O,O')2(indo-O)2(bipy)2(μ-H2O)]·3.3MeOH, [Co(indo-O,O')2(bipyam)]·0.9MeOH·0.2H2O, [Co(indo-O,O')2(phen)] (4) and [Co(indo-O)2(Himi)2] (5), respectively, where the indomethacin ligands were coordinated in diverse manners. The study of the affinity of the complexes for calf-thymus DNA revealed their intercalation between the DNA-bases. The binding of the complexes to albumins was also examined and the corresponding binding constants and binding subdomain were determined. The free radical scavenging activity of the compounds was evaluated towards 1,1-diphenyl-picrylhydrazyl and 2,2'-azinobis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid). Molecular modeling calculations may usually provide a molecular basis for the understanding of both the impairment of DNA by its binding with the studied complexes and the ability of these compounds to transportation through serum albumin proteins. This study can provide information for the elucidation of the mechanism of action of the compounds in a molecular level.