Monomeric and polymeric copper and zinc tripyrrins

Time-resolved dynamics of stable open- and closed-shell neutral radical and oxidized tripyrrindione complexes

Stable open- and closed-shell Pd(II) and Cu(II) complexes of hexaethyl tripyrrin-1,14-dione (TD1) produce triplet, doublet or singlet states depending on the metal center and the redox state of the ligand. Pd(II) and Cu(II) form neutral TD1 complexes featuring ligand-based radicals, thus resulting in doublet and triplet states, respectively. The reversible one-electron oxidation of the complexes removes an unpaired electron from the ligand, generating singlet and doublet states. The optical properties and time-resolved dynamics of these systems are studied here using steady-state and ultrafast transient absorption (pump-probe) measurements. Fast relaxation with recovery of the ground state in tens of picoseconds is observed for the copper neutral radical and oxidized complexes as well as for the palladium neutral radical complex. Significantly longer timescales are observed for the oxidized palladium complex. The ability to tune the overall spin state of the complexes through their stable open-shell configurations as well as the reversible redox activity of the tripyrrolic systems makes them particularly interesting for catalytic applications as well as exploring magnetism and conductivity properties.

Reactions of Antiaromatic Norcorrole Ni(II) Complex with Carbenes

Norcorrole is a ring-contracted porphyrinoid, exhibiting distinct antiaromaticity. Herein, we report the reactions of meso-dimesitylnorcorrole Ni(II) complex with two types of carbenes: dichlorocarbene and an N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC). The reaction with in-situ-generated dichlorocarbene resulted in the double insertion of two chloromethine units to provide a mixture of 5,15-dichloroporphyrin and chlorinated isopyricorroles. The nucleophilic NHC attacked the 3-position of the norcorrole core and the subsequent proton transfer furnished a nonconjugated macrocycle incorporating a diazafulvene segment.

Oxygenation of Phenanthriporphyrin and Copper(III) Phenanthriporphyrin: An Efficient Route to Phenanthribilinones

Photooxidation of copper(III) 5,6-dimethoxyphenathriporphyrin and copper(III) 5,6-dioxophenanthriporphyrin, which contain phenanthrene or dioxophenathrene moieties built into the macrocyclic frameworks, resulted in the regioselective cleavage that afforded organometallic copper(III) complexes of open-chain phenanthribilinone-type acyclic ligands terminated by carbonyl groups. The copper(III) coordinates two carbon atoms of phenantherene (dioxophenanthrene) and two nitrogen atoms of pyrrole and pyrrolone units, preserving the donor sets of the paternal complexes. The primary dioxygen attack is located at the meso carbon atom adjacent to the phenanthrene moiety. Demetalation of copper(III) 21-benzoyl-phenanthribilin-1-one and copper(III) 21-benzoyl-dioxophenanthribilin-1-one yielded mainly two diastereomers [15Z, 20E] and [15Z, 20Z], which differ in the configurations at two C_α-C_meso double bonds. The regioselectivity of the cleavage, detected in the course of experimental studies, has been substantiated by DFT investigations. The regioselective cleavage of 5,6-dimethoxyphenanthriporphyrin in reaction with basic iron(III) acetate was detected, providing the synthetically efficient methodology to produce 21-benzoyl-dioxophenanthribilin-1-one.

Synthesis of Hydroxyisooxophlorins by Oxidative Degradation of meso-Hydroxyporphyrins

Hydroxyisooxophlorin is an oxidatively degraded porphyrin that contains one carbonyl carbon, one hydroxymethylene group, and two sp²-methine groups at its meso positions. Here we report that oxidation of a free-base meso-hydroxyporphyrin with [bis(trifluoroacetoxy)iodo]benzene in the presence of H₂O afforded two regioisomers of hydroxyisooxophlorins, 10-hydroxy-10-iso-5-oxophlorin and 15-hydroxy-15-iso-5-oxophlorin, as major and minor products, respectively. We also examined the reaction mechanism, acid-mediated isomerization, metal complexation behavior, and physical properties of these molecules.

Paramagnetism and Fluorescence of Zinc(II) Tripyrrindione: A Luminescent Radical Based on a Redox-Active Biopyrrin

The ability of bilins and other biopyrrins to form fluorescent zinc complexes has been known for more than a century; however, the exact identity of the emissive species remains uncertain in many cases. Herein, we characterize the hitherto elusive zinc complex of tripyrrin-1,14-dione, an analogue of several orange urinary pigments. As previously observed for its Pd(II), Cu(II), and Ni(II) complexes, tripyrrindione binds Zn(II) as a dianionic radical and forms a paramagnetic complex carrying an unpaired electron on the ligand π-system. This species is stable at room temperature and undergoes quasi-reversible ligand-based redox chemistry. Although the complex is isolated as a coordination dimer in the solid state, optical absorption and electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopic studies indicate that the monomer is prevalent in a tetrahydrofuran solution. The paramagnetic Zn(II) tripyrrindione complex is brightly fluorescent (λ_abs = 599 nm, λ_em = 644 nm, Φ_F = 0.23 in THF), and its study provides a molecular basis for the observation, made over several decades since the 1930s, of fluorescent behavior of tripyrrindione pigments in the presence of zinc salts. The zinc-bound tripyrrindione radical is thus a new addition to the limited number of stable radicals that are fluorescent at room temperature.

Interactions of Metal-Based and Ligand-Based Electronic Spins in Neutral Tripyrrindione π Dimers

The ability of tetrapyrrolic macrocycles to stabilize unpaired electrons and engage in π-π interactions is essential for many electron-transfer processes in biology and materials engineering. Herein, we demonstrate that the formation of π dimers is recapitulated in complexes of a linear tripyrrolic analogue of naturally occurring pigments derived from heme decomposition. Hexaethyltripyrrindione (H₃TD1) coordinates divalent transition metals (i.e., Pd, Cu, Ni) as a stable dianionic radical and was recently described as a robust redox-active ligand. The resulting planar complexes, which feature a delocalized ligand-based electronic spin, are stable at room temperature in air and support ligand-based one-electron processes. We detail the dimerization of neutral tripyrrindione complexes in solution through electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) and visible absorption spectroscopic methods. Variable-temperature measurements using both EPR and absorption techniques allowed determination of the thermodynamic parameters of π dimerization, which resemble those previously reported for porphyrin radical cations. The inferred electronic structure, featuring coupling of ligand-based electronic spins in the π dimers, is supported by density functional theory (DFT) calculations.