skip to main content

Attention:

The NSF Public Access Repository (NSF-PAR) system and access will be unavailable from 11:00 PM ET on Friday, September 29 until 11:59 PM ET on Saturday, September 30 due to maintenance. We apologize for the inconvenience.


Title: Light-mediated aerobic oxidation of C(sp 3 )–H bonds by a Ce( iv ) hexachloride complex
A photochemical C(sp 3 )–H oxygenation of alkane and arene substrates catalyzed by [NEt 4 ] 2 [Ce IV Cl 6 ] under mild conditions (1 atm, 25 °C) is described. Time-course studies reveal that the hydrocarbons are oxidized in a stepwise fashion to afford alcohols, aldehydes, ketones, and carboxylic acids. The catalyst resting state, [Ce IV Cl 6 ] 2− , is observed by UV-visible spectroscopy. On/off light-switching experiments, quantum yield measurements, and the absence of a kinetic isotope effect on parallel C–H/C–D functionalization suggest that ligand-to-metal charge transfer of [NEt 4 ] 2 [Ce IV Cl 6 ] to generate Cl˙ is the turnover-limiting step. The involvement of a highly reducing excited-state [NEt 4 ] 3 [Ce III Cl 6 ]* species as well as photo-excited aldehyde, under black light irradiation appears to facilitate the conversion of primary alcohols and aldehydes to carboxylic acids. Remarkably, this approach is found to be capable of direct activation of light alkanes, including methane and ethane.  more » « less
Award ID(s):
1902509 1955724
NSF-PAR ID:
10348034
Author(s) / Creator(s):
; ; ;
Date Published:
Journal Name:
Organic Chemistry Frontiers
Volume:
9
Issue:
10
ISSN:
2052-4129
Page Range / eLocation ID:
2612 to 2620
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
More Like this
  1. Interest in O 2 -dependent aliphatic carbon–carbon (C–C) bond cleavage reactions of first row divalent metal diketonate complexes stems from the desire to further understand the reaction pathways of enzymes such as DKE1 and to extract information to develop applications in organic synthesis. A recent report of O 2 -dependent aliphatic C–C bond cleavage at ambient temperature in Ni( ii ) diketonate complexes supported by a tridentate nitrogen donor ligand [(MBBP)Ni(PhC(O)CHC(O)Ph)]Cl ( 7-Cl ; MBBP = 2,6-bis(1-methylbenzimidazol-2-yl)pyridine) in the presence of NEt 3 spurred our interest in further examining the chemistry of such complexes. A series of new TERPY-ligated Ni( ii ) diketonate complexes of the general formula [(TERPY)Ni(R 2 -1,3-diketonate)]ClO 4 ( 1 : R = CH 3 ; 2 : R = C(CH 3 ) 3 ; 3 : R = Ph) was prepared under air and characterized using single crystal X-ray crystallography, elemental analysis, 1 H NMR, ESI-MS, FTIR, and UV-vis. Analysis of the reaction mixtures in which these complexes were generated using 1 H NMR and ESI-MS revealed the presence of both the desired diketonate complex and the bis-TERPY derivative [(TERPY) 2 Ni](ClO 4 ) 2 ( 4 ). Through selective crystallization 1–3 were isolated in analytically pure form. Analysis of reaction mixtures leading to the formation of the MBBP analogs [(MBBP)Ni(R 2 -1,3-diketonate)]X (X = ClO 4 : 5 : R = CH 3 ; 6 : R = C(CH 3 ) 3 ; 7-ClO4 : R = Ph; X = Cl: 7-Cl : R = Ph) using 1 H NMR and ESI-MS revealed the presence of [(MBBP) 2 Ni](ClO 4 ) 2 ( 8 ). Analysis of aerobic acetonitrile solutions of analytically pure 1–3 , 5 and 6 containing NEt 3 and in some cases H 2 O using 1 H NMR and UV-vis revealed evidence for the formation of additional bis-ligand complexes ( 4 and 8 ) but suggested no oxidative diketonate cleavage reactivity. Analysis of the organic products generated from 3 , 7-ClO4 and 7-Cl revealed unaltered dibenzoylmethane. Our results therefore indicate that N 3 -ligated Ni( ii ) complexes of unsubstituted diketonate ligands do not exhibit O 2 -dependent aliphatic C–C bond clevage at room temperature, including in the presence of NEt 3 and/or H 2 O. 
    more » « less
  2. null (Ed.)
    The synthesis and characterization of a series of Sn( ii ) and Sn( iv ) complexes supported by the highly electron-withdrawing dianionic perfluoropinacolate (pin F ) ligand are reported herein. Three analogs of [Sn IV (pin F ) 3 ] 2− with NEt 3 H + ( 1 ), K + ( 2 ), and {K(18C6)} + ( 3 ) counter cations and two analogs of [Sn II (pin F ) 2 ] 2− with K + ( 4 ) and {K(15C5) 2 } + ( 5 ) counter cations were prepared and characterized by standard analytical methods, single-crystal X-ray diffraction, and 119 Sn Mössbauer and NMR spectroscopies. The six-coordinate Sn IV (pin F ) complexes display 119 Sn NMR resonances and 119 Sn Mössbauer spectra similar to SnO 2 (cassiterite). In contrast, the four-coordinate Sn II (pin F ) complexes, featuring a stereochemically-active lone pair, possess low 119 Sn NMR chemical shifts and relatively high quadrupolar splitting. Furthermore, the Sn( ii ) complexes are unreactive towards both Lewis bases (pyridine, NEt 3 ) and acids (BX 3 , Et 3 NH + ). Calculations confirm that the Sn( ii ) lone pair is localized within the 5s orbital and reveal that the Sn 5p x LUMO is energetically inaccessible, which effectively abates reactivity. 
    more » « less
  3. This study presents the role of 5d orbitals in the bonding, and electronic and magnetic structure of Ce imido and oxo complexes synthesized with a tris(hydroxylaminato) [((2- t BuNO)C 6 H 4 CH 2 ) 3 N] 3− (TriNO x 3− ) ligand framework, including the reported synthesis and characterization of two new alkali metal-capped Ce oxo species. X-ray spectroscopy measurements reveal that the imido and oxo materials exhibit an intermediate valent ground state of the Ce, displaying hallmark features in the Ce L III absorption of partial f-orbital occupancy that are relatively constant for all measured compounds. These spectra feature a double peak consistent with other formal Ce( iv ) compounds. Magnetic susceptibility measurements reveal enhanced levels of temperature-independent paramagnetism (TIP). In contrast to systems with direct bonding to an aromatic ligand, no clear correlation between the level of TIP and f-orbital occupancy is observed. CASSCF calculations defy a conventional van Vleck explanation of the TIP, indicating a single-reference ground state with no low-lying triplet excited state, despite accurately predicting the measured values of f-orbital occupancy. The calculations do, however, predict strong 4f/5d hybridization. In fact, within these complexes, despite having similar f-orbital occupancies and therefore levels of 4f/5d hybridization, the d-state distributions vary depending on the bonding motif (CeO vs. CeN) of the complex, and can also be fine-tuned based on varying alkali metal cation capping species. This system therefore provides a platform for understanding the characteristic nature of Ce multiple bonds and potential impact that the associated d-state distribution may have on resulting reactivity. 
    more » « less
  4. The reduction potentials (reported vs. Fc + /Fc) for a series of Cp′ 3 Ln complexes (Cp′ = C 5 H 4 SiMe 3 , Ln = lanthanide) were determined via electrochemistry in THF with [ n Bu 4 N][BPh 4 ] as the supporting electrolyte. The Ln( iii )/Ln( ii ) reduction potentials for Ln = Eu, Yb, Sm, and Tm (−1.07 to −2.83 V) follow the expected trend for stability of 4f 7 , 4f 14 , 4f 6 , and 4f 13 Ln( ii ) ions, respectively. The reduction potentials for Ln = Pr, Nd, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, and Lu, that form 4f n 5d 1 Ln( ii ) ions ( n = 2–14), fall in a narrow range of −2.95 V to −3.14 V. Only cathodic events were observed for La and Ce at −3.36 V and −3.43 V, respectively. The reduction potentials of the Ln( ii ) compounds [K(2.2.2-cryptand)][Cp′ 3 Ln] (Ln = Pr, Sm, Eu) match those of the Cp′ 3 Ln complexes. The reduction potentials of nine (C 5 Me 4 H) 3 Ln complexes were also studied and found to be 0.05–0.24 V more negative than those of the Cp′ 3 Ln compounds. 
    more » « less
  5. The synthesis and catalytic reactivity of a class of water-tolerant cationic phosphorus-based Lewis acids is reported. Corrole-based phosphorus( v ) cations of the type [ArP(cor)][B(C 6 F 5 ) 4 ] (Ar = C 6 H 5 , 3,5-(CF 3 ) 2 C 6 H 3 ; cor = 5,10,15-(C 6 H 5 ) 3 corrolato 3− , 5,10,15-(C 6 F 5 ) 3 corrolato 3− ) were synthesized and characterized by NMR and X-ray diffraction. The visible electronic absorption spectra of these cationic phosphacorroles depend strongly on the coordination environment at phosphorus, and their Lewis acidities are quantified by spectrophotometric titrations. DFT analyses establish that the character of the P-acceptor orbital comprises P–N antibonding interactions in the basal plane of the phosphacorrole. Consequently, the cationic phosphacorroles display unprecedented stability to water and alcohols while remaining highly active and robust Lewis acid catalysts for carbonyl hydrosilylation, C sp3 –H bond functionalization, and carbohydrate deoxygenation reactions. 
    more » « less