Aryl iodides as strong inhibitors in gold and gold-based bimetallic quasi-homogeneous catalysis

Halogen Bonding Involving Gold Nucleophiles in Different Oxidation States

A single-crystal X-ray diffraction (XRD) study of diaryliodonium tetrachloroaurates (or, in the recent terminology, tetrachloridoaurates), [(p-XC₆H₄)₂I][AuCl₄] (X = Cl, 1; Br, 2), was performed for 1 (the structure is denoted as 1a to show similarity with the isomorphic structure 2a) and two polymorphs─2a (obtained from MeOH) and 2b (from 1,2-C₂H₄Cl₂). Examination of the XRD data for these three structures revealed 2-center C-X···Au^III (X = Cl and Br) and 3-center bifurcated C-Br···(Cl-Au) halogen bonding (abbreviated as XB) between the p-Cl or p-Br atoms of the diaryliodonium cations and the gold(III) atom of [AuCl₄]^-. The noncovalent nature of Au^III-involving interactions, the nucleophilicity of the gold(III) atoms, and the electrophilic role of p-X atoms of the diaryliodonium cations in the XBs were studied by a set of complementary computational methods. Combined experimental and theoretical studies allowed the recognition of the d-nucleophilicity of the [d⁸Au^III] atom which, regardless of its rather substantial formal 3+ charge, can function as a d-nucleophilic partner of XB. This conclusion was also supported by theoretical calculations performed for the structures' refcodes BINXOM and ICSD 62511; the obtained data verified the nucleophilicity of Au^III toward a K⁺ ions or a σ-(Cl)-hole, respectively. All our results, together with consideration of relevant literature, indicate that gold atoms in the three oxidation states (0, I, and even III) exhibit nucleophilicity in XBs.

Metal Centers as Nucleophiles: Oxymoron of Halogen Bond-Involving Crystal Engineering

This review highlights recent studies discovering unconventional halogen bonding (HaB) that involves positively charged metal centers. These centers provide their filled d‐orbitals for HaB, and thus behave as nucleophilic components toward the noncovalent interaction. This role of some electron‐rich transition metal centers can be considered an oxymoron in the sense that the metal is, in most cases, formally cationic; consequently, its electron donor function is unexpected. The importance of Ha⋅⋅⋅d‐[M] (Ha=halogen; M is Group 9 (Rh, Ir), 10 (Ni, Pd, Pt), or 11 (Cu, Au)) interactions in crystal engineering is emphasized by showing remarkable examples (reported and uncovered by our processing of the Cambridge Structural Database), where this Ha⋅⋅⋅d‐[M] directional interaction guides the formation of solid supramolecular assemblies of different dimensionalities.

Studies of Nature of Uncommon Bifurcated I-I···(I-M) Metal-Involving Noncovalent Interaction in Palladium(II) and Platinum(II) Isocyanide Cocrystals

Two isostructural trans-[MI2(CNXyl)2]·I2 (M = Pd or Pt; CNXyl = 2,6-dimethylphenyl isocyanide) metallopolymeric cocrystals containing uncommon bifurcated iodine···(metal-iodide) contact were obtained. In addition to classical halogen bonding, single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis revealed a rare type of metal-involved stabilizing contact in both cocrystals. The nature of the noncovalent contact was studied computationally (via DFT, electrostatic surface potential, electron localization function, quantum theory of atoms in molecules, and noncovalent interactions plot methods). Studies confirmed that the I···I halogen bond is the strongest noncovalent interaction in the systems, followed by weaker I···M interaction. The electrophilic and nucleophilic nature of atoms participating in I···M interaction was studied with ED/ESP minima analysis. In trans-[PtI2(CNXyl)2]·I2 cocrystal, Pt atoms act as weak nucleophiles in I···Pt interaction. In the case of trans-[PdI2(CNXyl)2]·I2 cocrystal, electrophilic/nucleophilic roles of Pd and I are not clear, and thus the quasimetallophilic nature of the I···Pd interaction was suggested.

Excimer Formation of Aryl Iodides Chemisorbed on Gold Nanoparticles for the Significant Enhancement of Photoluminescence

The photoluminescence properties of aryl iodides chemisorbed on gold nanoparticles were examined. Chemisorption of a series of aryl iodides onto poly(N-vinylpyrrolidone)-protected Au nanoparticles (Au:PVP) in solution resulted in highly enhanced luminescence. Kinetic studies revealed that the photoluminescence is derived from the excimer formation of aryl iodides on Au:PVP, and the process is significantly faster than intersystem crossing by the heavy atom.

PdAu alloy nanoparticles supported on nitrogen-doped carbon black as highly active catalysts for Ullmann coupling and nitrophenol hydrogenation reactions

Noble metal-based catalysts have been proven to be active for catalytic organic reactions. The selectivity and conversion can be improved by integration with proper carrier materials, and further modulated by tuning the composition as well as the electronic structure of the active noble metals. Compared with unsupported monometallic catalysts, the synergistic interactions between neighboring metals and the combined effects between the carrier materials and the active components often give rise to positive influences on the enhancement of the catalytic efficiency and selectivity. In this work, we report a facile process for the fabrication of nitrogen-doped carbon black (NCB) supported PdAu bimetallic nanoparticles (NPs) with a uniform dispersion and narrow size distribution. The PdAu/NCB catalyst with a Pd/Au mole ratio of 1/1 shows the highest activity towards both Ullmann coupling reactions of aryl halides and the hydrogenation reaction of nitrophenols. Moreover, this bimetallic catalyst also exhibits a superior recycling durability to that of monometallic Pd/NCB and Au/NCB catalysts. The enhanced catalytic performance of the bimetallic catalyst is mainly due to the large BET specific surface area (125.45 m2 g-1) and the synergy between the individual components of the catalyst.

Halogen bond triggered aggregation induced emission in an iodinated cyanine dye for ultra sensitive detection of Ag nanoparticles in tap water and agricultural wastewater

Aggregation induced emission (AIE) has emerged as a powerful method for sensing applications. Based on AIE triggered by halogen bond (XB) formation, an ultrasensitive and selective sensor for picomolar detection of Ag nanoparticles (Ag NPs) is reported. The dye (CyI) has an iodine atom in its skeleton which functions as a halogen bond acceptor, and aggregates on the Ag NP plasmonic surfaces as a halogen bond donor or forms halogen bonds with the vacant π orbitals of silver ions (Ag⁺). Formation of XB leads to fluorescence enhancement, which forms the basis of the Ag NPs or Ag⁺ sensor. The sensor response is linearly dependent on the Ag NP concentration over the range 1.0–8.2 pM with an LOD of 6.21 pM (σ = 3), while for Ag⁺ it was linear over the 1.0–10 μM range (LOD = 2.36 μM). The sensor shows a remarkable sensitivity for Ag NPs (pM), compared to that for Ag⁺ (μM). The sensor did not show any interference from different metal ions with 10-fold higher concentrations. This result indicates that the proposed sensor is inexpensive, simple, sensitive, and selective for the detection of Ag NPs in both tap and wastewater samples.

Based on AIE triggered by halogen bond (XB) formation, we established an ultrasensitive and selective sensor for picomolar detection of Ag nanoparticles (Ag NPs).