Synthesis and Reactivity of the Methoxozirconium Pentatungstate (nBu4N)6[{(μ-MeO)ZrW5O18}2]: Insights into Proton-Transfer Reactions, Solution Dynamics, and Assembly of {ZrW5O18}2- Building Blocks

Resolving the Mechanism for H2O2 Decomposition over Zr(IV)-Substituted Lindqvist Tungstate: Evidence of Singlet Oxygen Intermediacy

The decomposition of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is the main undesired side reaction in catalytic oxidation processes of industrial interest that make use of H2O2 as a terminal oxidant, such as the epoxidation of alkenes. However, the mechanism responsible for this reaction is still poorly understood, thus hindering the development of design rules to maximize the efficiency of catalytic oxidations in terms of product selectivity and oxidant utilization efficiency. Here, we thoroughly investigated the H2O2 decomposition mechanism using a Zr-monosubstituted dimeric Lindqvist tungstate, (Bu4N)6[{W5O18Zr(μ-OH)}2] ({ZrW5}2), which revealed high activity for this reaction in acetonitrile. The mechanism of the {ZrW5}2-catalyzed H2O2 degradation in the absence of an organic substrate was investigated using kinetic, spectroscopic, and computational tools. The reaction is first order in the Zr catalyst and shows saturation behavior with increasing H2O2 concentration. The apparent activation energy is 11.5 kcal·mol-1, which is significantly lower than the values previously found for Ti- and Nb-substituted Lindqvist tungstates (14.6 and 16.7 kcal·mol-1, respectively). EPR spectroscopic studies indicated the formation of superoxide radicals, while EPR with a specific singlet oxygen trap, 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidone (4-oxo-TEMP), revealed the generation of 1O2. The interaction of test substrates, α-terpinene and tetramethylethylene, with H2O2 in the presence of {ZrW5}2 corroborated the formation of products typical of the oxidation processes that engage 1O2 (endoperoxide ascaridole and 2,3-dimethyl-3-butene-2-hydroperoxide, respectively). While radical scavengers tBuOH and p-benzoquinone produced no effect on the peroxide product yield, the addition of 4-oxo-TEMP significantly reduced it. After optimization of the reaction conditions, a 90% yield of ascaridole was attained. DFT calculations provided an atomistic description of the H2O2 decomposition mechanism by Zr-substituted Lindqvist tungstate catalysts. Calculations showed that the reaction proceeds through a Zr-trioxidane [Zr-η2-OO(OH)] key intermediate, whose formation is the rate-determining step. The Zr-substituted POM activates heterolytically a first H2O2 molecule to generate a Zr-peroxo species, which attacks nucleophilically to a second H2O2, causing its heterolytic O-O cleavage to yield the Zr-trioxidane complex. In agreement with spectroscopic and kinetic studies, the lowest-energy pathway involves dimeric Zr species and an inner-sphere mechanism. Still, we also found monomeric inner- and outer-sphere pathways that are close in energy and could coexist with the dimeric one. The highly reactive Zr-trioxidane intermediate can evolve heterolytically to release singlet oxygen and also decompose homolytically, producing superoxide as the predominant radical species. For H2O2 decomposition by Ti- and Nb-substituted POMs, we also propose the formation of the TM-trioxidane key intermediate, finding good agreement with the observed trends in apparent activation energies.

A Zr-added Dawson-type poly(polyoxometalate)

A novel Zr-added trimer, [H₂N(CH₃)₂]₁₀H₁₄[(Zr₂P₂W₁₆O₆₁)₃]·7H₂O (1), has been made under hydrothermal conditions, and contains the highest number of Zr centers in known Dawson-type poly(POM)s. A remarkable feature of this study is the first discovery of a new type of divacant [α-5,10-P₂W₁₆O₆₀]^14- fragment, which assembles with Zr⁴⁺ ions to form a cyclic trimer. Furthermore, 1 as a heterogeneous catalyst exhibits high activity for the selective oxidative degradation of a sulfur mustard simulant CEES.

Polyoxometalates in photocatalysis

Recent developments in polyoxometalate photochemistry are discussed with a focus on visible light driven productive chemical reactions. Special attention is given to the fundamental photochemistry of polyoxometalates and the effects on the resulting photoprocesses.

Zr4-Substituted polyoxometalate dimers decorated by d-tartaric acid/glycolic acid: syntheses, structures and optical/electrochemical properties

Two Zr₄-sandwiched Keggin polyoxometalates functionalized by chiral d-tartaric acid and glycolic acid were hydrothermally synthesized and structurally characterized. Their optical and electrochemical properties have been investigated in detail.

Immobilization of polyoxometalates in the Zr-based metal organic framework UiO-67

We report the successful synthesis of several POM@UiO-67 composites and their characterization by a panel of complementary techniques.

Thermochromic and solvatochromic properties of Lindqvist polyoxometalates

The thermochromic and solvatochromic properties of a family of Lindqvist polyoxometalates are rationalized by experimental and computational methods.

First oxido-bridged cubo-octahedral hexanuclear rhenium clusters

The first discrete hexanuclear metal clusters with cores adopting the M6(μ-O)12 cubo-octahedral topology have been synthesized in the course of a simple one-pot reaction. We present a new class of rhenium clusters which are the first hexanuclear rhenium complexes with 12 bridging ligands and the first clusters with octahedrally arranged Re atoms bridged only by O atoms forming a unique cube-like Re6(μ-O)12 unit. Our synthetic strategy demonstrates a new approach to the syntheses of polynuclear rhenium complexes under mild conditions. We discovered that the [Re6(μ-O)12(3-Mepy)6]BPh4 cluster compound has the ability to undergo reversible or/and quasireversible redox reactions without changing spatial structure and overall geometry. Subsequently, a reduction reaction of [Re6(μ-O)12(3-Mepy)6]BPh4 was performed successfully and almost quantitatively resulting in the formation of the molecular [Re6(μ-O)12(3-Mepy)6] complex.

Synergistic combination of multi-Zr(IV) cations and lacunary Keggin germanotungstates leading to a gigantic Zr24-cluster-substituted polyoxometalate

Synergistic directing roles of six lacunary fragments resulted in an unprecedented Zr24-cluster substituted poly(polyoxotungstate) Na10K22[Zr24O22(OH)10(H2O)2(W2O10H)2(GeW9O34)4(GeW8O31)2]·85H2O (Na10K22·1·85H2O), which contains the largest [Zr24O22(OH)10(H2O)2] (Zr24) cluster in all the Zr-based poly(polyoxometalate)s to date. The most remarkable feature is that the centrosymmetric Zr24-cluster-based hexamer contains two symmetry-related [Zr12O11(OH)5(H2O)(W2O10H)(GeW9O34)2(GeW8O31)](16-) trimers via six μ3-oxo bridges and was simultaneously trapped by three types of different segments of B-α-GeW9O34, B-α-GeW8O31, and W2O10. The other interesting characteristic is that there are two pairs of intriguing triangular atom alignments: one is composed of the Zr(2,4,6,8,11) and W21 atoms and the other contains the Ge(1-3), Zr(3,5,7,9,10,12) and W26 atoms, and the Zr5 atom is inside the triangle; a linking mode is unobserved. The oxygenation reactions of thioethers by H2O2 were evaluated when Na10K22·1·85H2O served as a catalyst. Results show that it is an effective catalyst for oxygenation of thioethers by H2O2. The unique redox property of oxygen-enriched polyoxotungstate fragments and Lewis acidity of the Zr cluster imbedded in Na10K22·1·85H2O provide a sufficient driving force for the catalytic conversion from thioethers to sulfoxides/sulfones.

Photocatalytic reactivity tuning by heterometal and addenda metal variation in Lindqvist polyoxometalates

The photooxidative performance of Lindqvist clusters [V_xM_6−xO₁₉]^(2+x)− (M = W, Mo, x = 1, 2) is increased by mono- and di-vanadium functionalization. Divergent reaction mechanisms are observed depending on the type of addenda metal (Mo/W).

Functionalization and post-functionalization: a step towards polyoxometalate-based materials

Polyoxometalates (POMs) have remarkable properties and a great deal of potential to meet contemporary societal demands regarding health, environment, energy and information technologies. However, implementation of POMs in various functional architectures, devices or materials requires a processing step. Most developments have considered the exchange of POM counterions in an electrostatically driven approach: immobilization of POMs on electrodes and other surfaces including oxides, embedding in polymers, incorporation into Layer-by-Layer assemblies or Langmuir-Blodgett films and hierarchical self-assembly of surfactant-encapsulated POMs have thus been thoroughly investigated. Meanwhile, the field of organic-inorganic POM hybrids has expanded and offers the opportunity to explore the covalent approach for the organization or immobilization of POMs. In this critical review, we focus on the use of POM hybrids in selected fields of applications such as catalysis, energy conversion and molecular nanosciences and we endeavor to discuss the impact of the covalent approach compared to the electrostatic one. The synthesis of organic-inorganic POM hybrids starting from bare POMs, that is the direct functionalization of POMs, is well documented and reliable and efficient synthetic procedures are available. However, as the complexity of the targeted functional system increases a multi-step strategy relying on the post-functionalization of preformed hybrid POM platforms could prove more appealing. In the second part of this review, we thus survey the synthetic methodologies of post-functionalization of POMs and critically discuss the opportunities it offers compared to direct functionalization.