The Rivalry between Intramolecular Tetrel Bonds and Intermolecular Hydrogen Bonds in (O-Si) Chelates of N-Silylmethylamides and -ureas. A Theoretical Study

The comparison of the results of theoretical calculations of (O-Si) chelates of N-silylmethylated amides and ureas with the axial chlorine or fluorine atom at silicon to the data of X-ray analysis of related compounds revealed the formation of covalent O-Si tetrel bonds (TB) or noncovalent O⋅⋅⋅Si tetrel bonds (NTB). The nature of the formed tetrel bond depends on the substituents at silicon and the polarity of the medium. The competition between the intramolecular TB and intermolecular hydrogen bonds (HB) with proton donors depends on the center of basicity involved in the formation of HB, which could be either oxygen or halogen. The hydrogen bonding can result in changing the nature of the tetrel bonds from covalent to noncovalent and vice versa by varying their lengths and energies. The O-Si bond energies estimated by QTAIM analysis of N-[(chlorodimethylsilyl)methyl]-N-methylacetamide and its H-complexes vary within the range of 7.2 and 12 kcal/mol in gas and solution, respectively, and correlate with the O-Si bond lengths.

Physiological Activity of Trace Element Germanium including Anticancer Properties

Germanium is an essential microelement, and its deficiency can result in numerous diseases, particularly oncogenic conditions. Consequently, water-soluble germanium compounds, including inorganic and coordination compounds, have attracted significant attention due to their biological activity. The review analyzes the primary research from the last decade related to the anticancer activity of germanium compounds. Furthermore, the review clarifies their actual toxicity, identifies errors and misconceptions that have contributed to the discrediting of their biological activity, and briefly suggests a putative mechanism of germanium-mediated protection from oxidative stress. Finally, the review provides clarifications on the discovery history of water-soluble organic germanium compounds, which was distorted and suppressed for a long time.

Disilanes with Pentacoordinate Si Atoms by Carbon Dioxide Insertion into Aminodisilanes: Syntheses, Molecular Structures, and Dynamic Behavior

The insertion of carbon dioxide into the Si-N bonds of aminodisilanes ((RR'N) _n Me_3-n Si)₂ affords carbamoyloxydisilanes ((RR'NC(O)O) _n Me_3-n Si)₂. Some of the obtained insertion products feature pentacoordinate silicon atoms in the solid state and in solution, with two carbamoyloxy moieties bridging the Si-Si bond. The aminodisilanes and their insertion products were extensively analyzed, including single-crystal X-ray structure analyses. The temperature dependence of the higher coordination was investigated using variable temperature NMR experiments.

The hierarchy of ab initio and DFT methods for describing an intramolecular non-covalent SiN contact in the silicon compounds using electron diffraction geometries

In the series of silatranes XSi(OCH2CH2)3N, 1 (X = Me, 1a; H, 1b; F, 1c) with the known gas electron diffraction (GED) structures, the problematic geometry of 1-methylsilatrane 1a has been revised. In particular, the new value of the SiN distance (dSiN) in 1a turned out to be ∼0.06 Å longer than the generally accepted one. This dSiN resolves the long-standing contradiction between the data of the structural and spectral experiments regarding the sensitivity of 1 to the medium effect. We also performed the ab initio and DFT study of the combined series of silatranes 1a-c, silylalkylamines H3Si(CH2)3NMe2 (2a) and F3SiCH2NMe2 (2b), silylhydrazines F3SiN(Me)NMe2 (2c) and F3SiN(SiMe3)NMe2 (2d), and silyloxyamines ClH2SiONMe2 (2e,f), (F3C)F2SiONMe2 (2g,h) and F3SiONMe2 (2i), in which the GED dSiN values are in a wide range of 2-3 Å. None of the involved quantum chemical methods has succeeded in reproducing all the experimental gas-phase dSiN values in 1a-c, 2a-i with an acceptable accuracy (0.01-0.03 Å). The problems of the used methods, primarily CCSD with the Pople basis sets, are caused by four molecules with the geminal SiNN and SiON fragments (2d,f-i) and dSiN < 2.3 Å. A reasonable hierarchy of computationally accessible theory levels for studying the physicochemical manifestation of the non-covalent intramolecular SiN interactions can be constructed only at dSiN > 2.3 Å: MP2 < PBE0 ∼ B3PW91 ∼ SCS-MP2 < CCSD < CCSD(T).

The synthesis, characterization, and theoretical analysis of novel Si-substituted silylethyl derivatives of 2-mercaptobenzoxazole and 2-mercaptobenzothiazole

Trifluorosilylethyl derivatives of 2-mercaptobenzoxazole and 2-mercaptobenzothiazole C₆H₄NYCS(CH₂)₂SiF₃ (Y = O, S) have been synthesized in order to study the intramolecular N → Si interaction in compounds with the SiCCSCN fragment.

Mechanism of Reactions of 1-Substituted Silatranes and Germatranes, 2,2-Disubstituted Silocanes and Germocanes, 1,1,1-Trisubstituted Hyposilatranes and Hypogermatranes with Alcohols (Methanol, Ethanol): DFT Study

The mechanism of reactions of silatranes and germatranes, and their bicyclic and monocyclic analogues with one molecule of methanol or ethanol, was studied at the Density Functional Theory (DFT) B3PW91/6-311++G(df,p) level of theory. Reactions of 1-substituted sil(germ)atranes, 2,2-disubstituted sil(germ)ocanes, and 1,1,1-trisubstituted hyposil(germ)atranes with alcohol (methanol, ethanol) proceed in one step through four-center transition states followed by the opening of a silicon or germanium skeleton and the formation of products. According to quantum chemical calculations, the activation energies and Gibbs energies of activation of reactions with methanol and ethanol are close, their values decrease in the series of atranes–ocanes–hypoatranes for interactions with both methanol and ethanol. The reactions of germanium-containing derivatives are characterized by lower activation energies in comparison with the reactions of corresponding silicon-containing compounds. The annular configurations of the product molecules with electronegative substituents are stabilized by the transannular N→X (X = Si, Ge) bond and different intramolecular hydrogen contacts with the participation of heteroatoms of substituents at the silicon or germanium.

Assignment of photoelectron spectra of intramolecular silicon complexes: 1-vinyl- and 1-phenylsilatranes

The problematic photoelectron spectra of 1-vinyl- and 1-phenylsilatranes were theoretically studied and the correlation between the VIE and thed_SiNwas proposed to be used for the identification of orbitals in the Si←N coordination bond in XSi[OCH₂CH₂]₃N.

Electrochemical Oxidation and Radical Cations of Structurally Non-rigid Hypervalent Silatranes: Theoretical and Experimental Studies

Using 18 silatranes XSi(OCH₂ CH₂ )₃ N (1) as examples, the potentials of electrochemical oxidation E⁰ of the hypervalent compounds of Si were calculated for the first time at the ab initio and DFT levels. The experimental peak potentials E_p (acetonitrile) show an excellent agreement (MAE=0.03) with the MP2//B3PW91 calculated E⁰ (C-PCM). Radical cations of 1 reveal a stretch isomerism of the N→Si dative bond. Localization of the spin density (SD) on the substituent X and the short (s) coordination contact Si⋅⋅⋅N (d_SiN <2.13 Å) along with the high five-coordinate character of Si are typical for the first isomer 1^+.(s) , whereas the second one, 1^+.(l) , has a longer (l) Si⋅⋅⋅N distance (d_SiN >3.0 Å), the four-coordinate Si and the SD localized on the silatrane nitrogen atom N_s . The vertical model of adiabatic ionization (1→1^+.(s) or 1→1^+.(l) ) was developed. It allows, in accordance with an original experimental test (electrooxidation of 1 in the presence of ferrocene), a reliable prediction of the most probable pathways of the silatrane oxidation. The reliable relationships of E⁰ (1) with the strength characteristics of the dative contact N→Si were revealed.

Computational Study of Ways by Which exo-Silatranes Might Be Prepared

exo-Silatranes involve cage structures where the nitrogen lone pair points away from the cage rather than into it. This distinguishes them from the well-established endo-silatranes. exo-Silatranes have not been observed experimentally, consistent with a significant benefit to silicon-nitrogen interactions inside the cages as suggested for endo-silatranes. Identifying examples of exo-silatranes would prove useful in understanding Si-N interactions, as they would represent the "no interaction" extreme of the spectrum. We have found four means by which exo-silatranes might be synthesized: (1) employing smaller cages; (2) employing constrained rings to stiffen the cage backbones; (3) employing steric interactions to enhance preference for the less crowded exo-geometry around nitrogen; (4) modifying the Lewis acidity and basicity of the silicon and nitrogen so significantly as to remove their desire to interact. The preference for exo geometries is established using the parameter Δ, representing the distance between the nitrogen atom and the least-squares plane containing the adjacent carbon atoms. In some cases, Δ values for exo-silatranes are greater than 0.3 Å. In others, they are near zero, indicating a nearly planar nitrogen atom. There are no obvious structural markers besides Δ that distinguish between exo- and endo-silatranes.

Synthesis of six-coordinate mono-, bis-, and tris(tetrazolato) complexes via [3 + 2] cycloadditions of nitriles to silicon-bound azido ligands

A convenient synthetic route to poly(tetrazolato) silicon complexes is described based on the four reactive centres of the N-rich, highly endothermic tetraazides of the type Si(N₃)₄(L₂). Hypercoordinate azido(tetrazolato) silicon complexes Si(N₃)₂(N₄C-R)₂(L₂), R = CH₃, C₆H₅, 4-C₆H₄CH₃ (4a, 5, 6, 7) and Si(N₃)₂(N₄C-L)₂ (9, L = 2-C₅H₄N), L₂ = 2,2'-bipyridine, 1,10-phenanthroline, with SiN₆ skeletons were synthesised via multiple [3 + 2] dipolar cycloaddition reactions starting from Si(N₃)₄(L₂) and a nitrile. The isolated new complexes were characterised by standard analytical methods, single crystal X-ray diffraction and differential scanning calorimetry (4a,b). Tetrazolato ligand linkage isomerism was observed for complex 4a. The crystallographically characterised methyl tetrazolato complexes and plausible configurational and linkage isomers were evaluated by DFT calculations at the B3LYP/6-311G(d,p) level.

Extraction and coordination studies of a carbonyl–phosphine oxide scorpionate ligand with uranyl and lanthanide(iii) nitrates: structural, spectroscopic and DFT characterization of the complexes

A scorpionate organophosphorus ligand exhibits promising extraction properties and variable denticity in f-block element complexes in the solid state and solution.

Assignment of photoelectron spectra of silatranes: first ionization energies and the nature of the dative Si←N contact

The problematic experimental (8–12 eV) photoelectron spectra of silatranes were theoretically studied and the correlation was found between the first vertical ionization energies, VIEs₁, and the various characteristics of the coordination Si←N contact.