Directed Synthesis of the Triangular Mixed-Metal Cluster H2RhRe2Cp*(CO)9: Ligand Fluxionality and Facile Cluster Fragmentation in the Presence of CO, Halogenated Solvents, and Thiols

E-H Bond Activation and Insertion Processes in the Reactions of the Unsaturated Hydride [W2Cp2(μ-H)(μ-PPh2)(NO)2]

The reactions of the title complex (1) with different p-block element (E) molecules was examined. Compound 1 reacted with BH₃·THF at room temperature to give the trihydride [W₂Cp₂(μ-H)H₂(μ-PPh₂)(NO)₂], which formally results from hydrogenation of 1, a reaction that actually does not take place when neat dihydrogen is used. Clean E-H bond oxidative addition, however, took place when 1 was reacted with HSnPh₃, to give the related dihydride stannyl derivative [W₂Cp₂(μ-H)H(μ-PPh₂)(NO)₂(SnPh₃)]. In contrast, the reaction of 1 with HSPh involved H₂ elimination to give the thiolate-bridged complex [W₂Cp₂(μ-SPh)(μ-PPh₂)(NO)₂], while that with (p-tol)C(O)H resulted in insertion of the aldehyde to yield the related alkoxide complex [W₂Cp₂{μ-OCH₂(p-tol)}(μ-PPh₂)(NO)₂]. Insertion also prevailed in the reactions of 1 with CN^tBu, which, however, involved the competitive formation of new C-H or N-H bonds, to give a mixture of formimidoyl and aminocarbyne derivatives, [W₂Cp₂(μ-κ¹:η²-HCN^tBu)(μ-PPh₂)(NO)₂] (W-W = 3.0177(2) Å) and [W₂Cp₂{μ-C(NH^tBu)}(μ-PPh₂)(NO)₂] (W-W = 2.9010(4) Å), respectively, even though the latter was thermodynamically preferred, according to density functional theory calculations. The former represents the first structurally characterized complex displaying a formimidoyl or iminoacyl ligand in the alkenyl-like μ-κ¹:η² coordination mode. The reaction of 1 with diazomethane proceeded with N₂ elimination and C-H coupling to yield the agostic methyl-bridged complex [W₂Cp₂(μ-κ¹:η²-CH₃)(μ-PPh₂)(NO)₂] (calculated W-W = 2.923 Å), whereas the reaction with N₂CH(SiMe₃) proceeded with insertion of the diazoalkane to give the corresponding hydrazonide complex [W₂Cp₂{μ-NH(NCHSiMe₃)}(μ-PPh₂)(NO)₂] (W-W = 2.8608(4) Å). The latter was converted under alkaline conditions to the methyldiazenide derivative [W₂Cp₂{μ-N(NMe)}(μ-PPh₂)(NO)₂] (W-W = 2.8730(2) Å), in a process involving hydrolysis of the C-Si bond coupled with a 1,3-H shift from N to C.

Structure and dynamics of heterometallic clusters derived from addition of metal carbonyl fragments to the unsaturated hydride [W2Cp2(μ-H)(μ-PPh2)(NO)2]

The title complex reacted with [Fe₂(CO)₉] to give the trinuclear derivative [FeW₂Cp₂(μ-H)(μ-PPh₂)(CO)₄(NO)₂] (W-W = 3.044(1) Å) as a result of full insertion of the 16-electron Fe(CO)₄ fragment into the tricentric W-H-W bond of the parent substrate. In contrast, the reactions with the THF adducts [M(CO)₅(THF)] (M = W, Mo) and [MnCp'(CO)₂(THF)] (Cp' = C₅H₄Me) yielded the μ₃-hydride derivatives [MW₂Cp₂(μ₃-H)(μ-PPh₂)(CO)₅(NO)₂] (W-W = 3.006(1) to 3.164(1) Å for the W₃ compound) and [MnW₂Cp₂Cp'(μ₃-H)(μ-PPh₂)(CO)₂(NO)₂] respectively, all of them resulting from addition (rather than insertion) of the corresponding 16-electron fragment to the W₂H moiety of the parent compound. Density Functional Theory calculations revealed that edge- and face-bridged hydride clusters were of similar energy in the W₂Fe system, while the face-bridged structure was significantly more stable (by more than ca. 40 kJ mol^-1) for the W₃ system. Both clusters displayed fast rearrangement in solution involving a flapping movement of the puckered PW₂M core of these molecules. This was combined, in the W₂Fe cluster, with fast exchange between the almost isoenergetic edge- and face-bridged hydride isomers. The reactions of the title compound with several carbonyl dimers were also examined as an additional synthetic approach to the rational synthesis of heterometallic clusters, but were unsuccessful except in the case of [Co₂(CO)₈], which reacted at 253 K in the dark to give a mixture of the binuclear complex [CoWCp(μ-PPh₂)(CO)₄(NO)] (Co-W = 2.8623(6) Å) and the trinuclear cluster [CoW₂Cp₂(μ-PPh₂)(CO)₄(NO)₂] (W-W = 3.1654(4) Å; W-Co = 2.638(1), 2.829(1) Å), the latter resulting from formal replacement of the hydride ligand with the 17-electron fragment Co(CO)₄, which displayed an asymmetric binding to the W₂ centre.