Synthesis, Structure, and Catalytic Studies of Palladium and Platinum Bis-Sulfoxide Complexes

Stereoselective Synthesis of Chiral C2-Symmetric 1,3- and 1,5-Bis-Sulfoxides Guided by the Horeau Principle: Understanding the Influence of the Carbon Chain Nature in Its Ability for Metal Coordination

The stereoselective synthesis of two distinct types of C2-symmetric chiral bis-sulfoxides, 1,3- and 1,5-bis(sulfinyl) derivatives, has been achieved based on the DAG methodology. The 1,5-bis(sulfinyl) derivatives constitute a new family of tridentate chiral ligands thanks to the presence of an additional sulfenyl or sulfinyl group in the carbon chain acting as a bridge. A systematic development and optimization of two synthetic routes, one for each ligand family, have been undertaken, highlighting the strategic utilization of Horeau's law to enhance enantioselectivity. Additionally, palladium (Pd) and ruthenium (Ru) complexes derived from the synthesized bis-sulfoxides were prepared, and their structures were elucidated through spectroscopic analysis. Isolation of Pd(II) complexes involving 1,3-bis-sulfoxides was exclusively achieved using trifluoroacetates as coligands. In the case of Ru(II) complexes, the trans geometry could be determined for 1,3-bis-sulfoxides. The introduction of a third sulfur atom as a coordinating element in the 1,5-bis(sulfinyl) derivatives facilitates the formation of two distinct tricoordinated Ru(II) complexes. The structure of these complexes is intricately influenced by the oxidation state adopted by the central sulfur on the chain, whether as a thioether or as a sulfoxide.

Advancing Heterogeneous Organic Synthesis With Coordination Chemistry-Empowered Single-Atom Catalysts

For traditional metal complexes, intricate chemistry is required to acquire appropriate ligands for controlling the electron and steric hindrance of metal active centers. Comparatively, the preparation of single-atom catalysts is much easier with more straightforward and effective accesses for the arrangement and control of metal active centers. The presence of coordination atoms or neighboring functional atoms on the supports' surface ensures the stability of metal single-atoms and their interactions with individual metal atoms substantially regulate the performance of metal active centers. Therefore, the collaborative interaction between metal and the surrounding coordination environment enhances the initiation of reaction substrates and the formation and transformation of crucial intermediate compounds, which imparts single-atom catalysts with significant catalytic efficacy, rendering them a valuable framework for investigating the correlation between structure and activity, as well as the reaction mechanism of catalysts in organic reactions. Herein, comprehensive overviews of the coordination interaction for both homogeneous metal complexes and single-atom catalysts in organic reactions are provided. Additionally, reflective conjectures about the advancement of single-atom catalysts in organic synthesis are also proposed to present as a reference for later development.

Pt(PPh3)4 and Pt(PPh3)4@IL catalyzed hydroboration of ketones

An efficient method for the reduction of various ketones via [Pt(PPh3)4]-catalyzed hydroboration with HBpin has been successfully developed for the first time. The protocol is suitable for symmetrical and unsymmetrical derivatives possessing electron donating or withdrawing functional groups. O-borylated products were easily converted to 2° alcohols via hydrolysis with high isolated yields. According to the low-temperature NMR spectroscopy, a reaction mechanism was proposed. Additionally, effective immobilization of the catalyst in the ionic liquid [BMIM][NTf2] was applied to increase the productivity of the process by carrying out reactions under the repetitive batch mode, obtaining higher TON values and limiting the amount of expensive Pt used. The catalyst stability and almost neglectable leaching were confirmed by ICP-MS analysis of the extracted mixture. A simple separation method via extraction with n-heptane, efficient catalyst immobilization, and the commercial availability of the Pt complex, make this protocol an attractive method for the hydroboration of ketones.

Facile Strategy for Efficient Charge Separation and High Photoactivity of Mixed-Linker MOFs

Two new sets of UiO-Zr metal-organic framework (MOF) bearing mixed linkers BDC-(SCH₃)₂ and BDC-(SOCH₃)₂ that have different band gaps and edges were prepared through post oxidation and direct methods, namely, UiO-66-(SCH₃)₂-xh (x = 4, 9, 12 oxidation hours) and UiO-66-(SOCH₃)_x(SCH₃)_2-x (x = 0, 0.4, 0.6, 2), respectively. These composites with stoichiometric components were fully characterized via proton nuclear magnetic resonance (¹H NMR) spectroscopy, powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR) spectra, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET), photo electrochemical measurements, and femtosecond transient absorption (fs-TA) spectroscopy. The structure, electronic property, and photoresponsive and catalytic ability as the functions of the molar ratio of linkers and the synthetic protocol were first investigated. The mixed-linker UiO-66-(SCH₃)₂-xh and UiO-66-(SOCH₃)_x(SCH₃)_2-x exhibited improved performances as compared to the UiO-66-(SCH₃)₂ and UiO-66-(SOCH₃)₂ possessing neat linkers only. Their photo response and catalytic activity varied with different linker ratios. For UiO-66-(SCH₃)₂-xh, the performance increased with the increasing linker BDC-(SOCH₃)₂ ratio upon oxidation but reached the highest as the BDC-(SOCH₃)₂ being of 24.4% in UiO-66-(SCH₃)₂-9h. In comparison, the best photocurrent (80.74 uA/cm^-2) and the highest H₂ generation rate (2018.8 μmol g^-1 h^-1) (λ > 400 nm) in UiO-66-(SCH₃)₂-9h are about twice those of UiO-66-(SOCH₃)_0.4(SCH₃)_1.6 obtained by direct synthesis, although the linker BDC-(SOCH₃)₂ ratio of those two composites is almost the same (24.4% vs 23.9%). Recorded shorter lifetime and higher charge separation efficiency of the former than those of the latter suggest the postsynthetic protocol as the efficient method for achieving the mixed-liner-MOF-based photocatalyst with high performance. A new type-II tailored homojunction is proposed in these mixed-linker MOFs for their efficient charge separation and improved activity.

Critical Role of Anions in Platinum(II) Precursors upon the Structural Motifs of Six-Membered Cycloplatinated N,N',N″-Triarylguanidines

The reactions of cis-[Pt(OAc)₂(DMSO)₂] with 2 equiv of sym N,N',N″-triarylguanidines, [ArN=C(NHAr)₂], in toluene under reflux condition for 8 h afforded six-membered cycloplatinated guanidines, [Pt{κ²(C,N)}(OAc){κ¹ N(ArN=C(NHAr)₂)}] [sym = symmetrical; Ar = 2-MeC₆H₄ (1) and 2,4-Me₂C₆H₃ (2)], in 82 and 84% yields, respectively. The salt metathesis reaction of 1 with 1 equiv of AgTFA in CH₂Cl₂ at room temperature (RT) afforded [Pt{κ²(C,N)}(TFA){κ¹ N(ArN=C(NHAr)₂)}] (3) in 94% yield. The reaction of cis-[Pt(TFA)₂(DMSO)₂] with 1 equiv of [ArN=C(NHAr)₂] in toluene under reflux condition for 8 h afforded six-membered cycloplatinated guanidines, [Pt{κ²(C,N)}(TFA)(DMSO)] [Ar = 2-MeC₆H₄ (4), 4-MeC₆H₄ (5), 2,4-Me₂C₆H₃ (6), and 2-(MeO)C₆H₄ (7)], in ≥73% yields. The reaction of trans-[PtCl₂(PhCN)₂] with 2 equiv of [ArN=C(NHAr)₂] in toluene under reflux condition for 48 h afforded trans-[PtCl₂{ArN=C(NHAr)₂}₂] [Ar = 2-MeC₆H₄ (8) and 2,4-Me₂C₆H₃ (9)] in 90 and 45% yields, respectively. Complexes 8 and 9 were separately refluxed in MeOH for 8 h to afford six-membered cycloplatinated guanidines, [Pt{κ²(C,N)}(μ-Cl)]₂ (10 and 11), in 93 and 96% yields, respectively, with concomitant formation of the respective guanidinium salts, [(ArNH)₃C]Cl, as the byproduct. Platinacycle 10 was treated with 2 equiv of AgTFA in CH₂Cl₂ at RT to afford six-membered cycloplatinated guanidine, [Pt{κ²(C,N)}(μ-TFA)]₂ (12), in 94% yield. The new compounds were characterized by analytical techniques and multinuclear NMR (¹H, ¹³C, and ¹⁹⁵Pt) spectroscopy, and further, molecular structures of 10 compounds were determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The structural motif in 1·1/2CH₂Cl₂ and 3 is novel in that it contains a planar six-membered [Pt{κ²(C,N)}] unit and a nonplanar eight-membered [Pt{κ²(N,O)}] ring, wherein OAc and the guanidine ligands are linked through a N-H···O hydrogen bond. The six-membered cycloplatinated structural motifs present in 10/11·C₇H₈ and 12·CH₂Cl₂ are also unprecedented in the literature. The number and nature of solution species of new complexes were unambiguously investigated by detailed NMR studies. The critical role of anions in Pt(II) precursors upon the course of cycloplatination and thus the motifs in the products were addressed. Plausible mechanisms of cycloplatination reactions are discussed.

Efficient sampling over rough energy landscapes with high barriers: A combination of metadynamics with integrated tempering sampling

In order to efficiently overcome high free energy barriers embedded in a complex energy landscape and calculate overall thermodynamics properties using molecular dynamics simulations, we developed and implemented a sampling strategy by combining the metadynamics with (selective) integrated tempering sampling (ITS/SITS) method. The dominant local minima on the potential energy surface (PES) are partially exalted by accumulating history-dependent potentials as in metadynamics, and the sampling over the entire PES is further enhanced by ITS/SITS. With this hybrid method, the simulated system can be rapidly driven across the dominant barrier along selected collective coordinates. Then, ITS/SITS ensures a fast convergence of the sampling over the entire PES and an efficient calculation of the overall thermodynamic properties of the simulation system. To test the accuracy and efficiency of this method, we first benchmarked this method in the calculation of ϕ - ψ distribution of alanine dipeptide in explicit solvent. We further applied it to examine the design of template molecules for aromatic meta-C-H activation in solutions and investigate solution conformations of the nonapeptide Bradykinin involving slow cis-trans isomerizations of three proline residues.

C-H functionalization at sterically congested positions by the platinum-catalyzed borylation of arenes

Despite significant progress in the area of C-H bond functionalization of arenes, no general method has been reported for the functionalization of C-H bonds at the sterically encumbered positions of simple arenes, such as mesitylene. Herein, we report the development of the first platinum-based catalyst for C-H borylation of arenes and heteroarenes. Notably, this method exhibited high tolerance toward steric hindrance and provided rapid access to a series of 2,6-disubstituted phenylboronic esters, valuable building blocks for further elaborations.

The emergence of sulfoxides as efficient ligands in transition metal catalysis

Sulfoxides are capable of forming stable complexes with transition metals and there have been many comprehensive studies into their binding properties. However, the use of sulfoxides, particularly chiral sulfoxides, as ligands in transition metal catalysis is rather less well developed. This review aims to describe these catalytic studies and covers new developments that are showing very promising results and that have led to a renewed interest in this field.