Preparation of Thiolate-Bridged Dinuclear Ruthenium Complexes Bearing a Phosphine Ligand and Application to Propargylic Reduction of Propargylic Alcohols with 2-Propanol

Ruthenium- and Copper-Catalyzed Propargylic Substitution Reactions of Propargylic Alcohol Derivatives with Hydrazones

Ruthenium- and copper-catalyzed propargylic substitution reactions of propargylic alcohol derivatives with N-monosubstituted hydrazones as ambident nucleophiles are achieved in which N-monosubstituted hydrazones exhibit impressive different reactivities depending on different catalytic systems, behaving as carbon-centered nucleophiles to give the corresponding propargylic alkylated products in ruthenium catalysis, or as nitrogen-centered nucleophiles to afford the corresponding propargylic aminated products in copper catalysis. DFT calculations were carried out to investigate the detailed reaction pathways of these two systems. Further transformation of propargylic substituted products affords the corresponding multisubstituted pyrazoles as cyclization products in good to high yields.

Transition Metal Vinylidene- and Allenylidene-Mediated Catalysis in Organic Synthesis

With their mechanistic novelty and various modalities of reactivity, transition metal unsaturated carbene (alkenylidene) complexes have emerged as versatile intermediates for new reaction discovery. In particular, the past decade has witnessed remarkable advances in the chemistry of metal vinylidenes and allenylidenes, leading to the evolution of a diverse array of new catalytic transformations that are mechanistically distinct from those developed in the previous two decades. This review aims to provide a survey of the recent achievements in the development of organic reactions that make use of transition metal alkenylidenes as catalytic intermediates and their applications to organic synthesis.

Biomimetic catalytic oxidative coupling of thiols using thiolate-bridged dinuclear metal complexes containing iron in water under mild conditions

A green approach to disulfides via aerobic oxidative coupling of thiols was developed with a thiolate-bridged heteronuclear complex in water.

Structural Preferences in Phosphanylthiolato Platinum(II) Complexes

The transition‐metal complexes of heterotopic phosphanylthiolato ligands are useful in various reactions which depend on the stereochemistry of the complexes. Bis‐chelate complex [Pt(SCH₂CH₂PPh₂‐κ²P,S)₂] (1) was obtained in good yields by direct base‐free substitution reaction of the corresponding phosphanylthiol (HSCH₂CH₂PPh₂) with K₂PtCl₄ or by oxidative addition of the same phosphanylthiol to Pt(PPh₃)₄. In agreement with the antisymbiosis rule, complex 1 shows a cis‐P,P arrangement in solid state crystallizing in the monoclinic system (C2/c). Density functional theory (DFT) calculations on 1 reveal the right characteristics for the preferred cis‐P,P arrangement, rationalizing its formation. Direct base‐free reaction of [PtCl₂(1,5‐cyclooctadiene)] with one equivalent of the same phosphanylthiol produce the trinuclear complex [PtCl(μ‐SCH₂CH₂PPh₂‐κ²P,S)]₃ (2) instead of the binuclear structure common in palladium and nickel derivatives. Crystals of 2 are triclinic (P1‾ ) showing a sulfur‐bridging edge‐sharing cyclic trinuclear complex with square‐planar coordination geometry around the platinum atoms and a Pt₃S₃ cycle in skew‐boat conformation. This preference for the trinuclear structure was rationalized mechanistically and through conceptual DFT.

Pentaarylcyclopentadienyl Iron, Cobalt, and Nickel Halides

The preparation of new stable half-sandwich transition metal complexes, having a bulky cyclopentadienyl ligand C5(C6H4-4-Et)5 (Cp(Ar1)) or C5(C6H4-4-nBu)5 (Cp(Ar2)), is reported. The tetrahydrofuran (THF) adduct [Cp(Ar1)Fe(μ-Br)(THF)]2 (1a) was synthesized by reacting K[Cp(Ar1)] with [FeBr2(THF)2] in THF, and its molecular structure was determined by X-ray crystallography. Complex 1a easily loses its coordinated THF molecules under vacuum to form the solvent-free complex [Cp(Ar1)Fe(μ-Br)]2 (1b). The analogous complexes [Cp(Ar1)Co(μ-Br)]2 (2), [Cp(Ar1)Ni(μ-Br)]2 (3), and [Cp(Ar2)Ni(μ-Br)]2 (4) were synthesized from CoBr2 and [NiBr2(1,2-dimethoxyethane)]. The mononuclear, low-spin cobalt(III) and nickel(III) complexes [Cp(Ar2)MI2] (5, M = Co; 6, M = Ni) were prepared by reacting the radical Cp(Ar2) with NiI2 and CoI2. The complexes were characterized by NMR and UV-vis spectroscopies and by elemental analyses. Single-crystal X-ray structure analyses revealed that the dimeric complexes 1a, 1b, and 3 have a planar M2Br2 core, whereas 2 and 4 feature a puckered M2Br2 ring.

Heteropolytopic phosphanylarylthiolato ligands: formation of cis isomers of nickel(II), palladium(III) and platinum(III) complexes with 1-P(Biph)-2-SHC6H4 (Biph = 1,1'-biphenyl-2,2'-diyl)

Reaction of the ditopic phosphanylarylthiol 1-P(Biph)-2-SHC(6)H(4) (BiphPSH, Biph = 1,1'-biphenyl-2,2'-diyl), prepared by lithiation-electrophilic substitution, with NiCl(2)·6H(2)O, Na(2)[PdCl(4)] and [PtI(2)(cod)] (cod = 1,5-cyclooctadiene) in a 2:1 ratio and in the presence of NEt(3) led to formation of exclusively cis isomers of the square-planar complexes cis-[M{(1-P(Biph)-2-S-C(6)H(4))-κ(2)S,P}(2)] ([M{(BiphPS)-κ(2)S,P}(2)]; M = Ni (1), Pd (2), Pt (3)). Density functional calculations support the assumption that this is probably due to intramolecular π-π interaction of the biphenyl groups, which results in enhanced stability of the cis isomers. Compound 1 is the first example of a structurally characterised mononuclear cis-bis(phosphanylthiolato)nickel(III) complex. Small amounts of the trinuclear complex [{PtI(1-P(Biph)-μ-2-S-C(6)H(4)-κ(2)S,P)}(3)] (4) are also formed besides the mononuclear platinum bis-chelate complex 3.