The synthetic studies include the synthesis of the cyclic siloxydiyne, 3,3,5,5,8,8,10,10-octamethyl-4,9-dioxa-3,5,8,10-tetrasilacyclodeca-1,6- diyne [VI] and its novel iron carbonyl complex. In the preparation of [VI] by HBr promoted condensation of bis (methoxydimethylsilyl) acetylene, a minor product, a cyclic trimer was always formed along with the major product [VI]. No evidence of an equilibrium between the trimerization product and the dimerization product was found. Compound [VI] can react with iron carbonyl reagents to produce a novel binuclear iron complex of trimethylenemethane [VII] in very low yield either in a thermal or photo-reaction. The key step proposed by us in the formation of [VII] is a I,2-silyl shift in a complexed bis (silyl) acetylene to form a vinylidene intermediate. Experiments aimed at isolating this intermediate were not successful.

The objective of the research described in the first part of this thesis involves the application of carbon monoxide and transition metals in key steps of a synthetic route to lavendamycin, an antic cancer compound, and its analogues. Lavendamycin is a pentacyclic compound that possesses a quinoline-5,8-quinone AB ring linked to a b- carboline CED ring. The development of general routes to the synthetic equivalents of the lavendamycin AB quinoline system together with a linker atom, quinoline -2- carboxaldehydes, as well as to the lavendamycin DE indole ring system, namely tryptophan derivatives, was addressed. The Pictet-Spengler cyclisation approach towards lavendamycin involves the reaction between quinoline-2-carboxaldehyde and tryptophan methyl ester to furnish the pentacyclic precursor of the methyl ester of lavendamycin. This synthetic approach requires the availability of quinoline-2-carboxaldehydes, previously prepared by the oxidation of 2-methylquinolines with toxic selenium dioxide. A general strategy towards the synthesis of the AB ring moiety utilising a pre-formed ring system such as commercially available 8-hydroxyquinoline has been successfully developed. It involved the high pressure palladium catalysed formylation of 2-bromo or other suitable 2-substituted quinoline derivatives under syngas (1:1 CO:H2). The preparation of the required 2-substituted quinoline derivative involved the methylation of the 8-hydroxylgroup followed by N-oxidation and then a rearrangement step. In both the Pictet-Spengler and Bischler-Napieralski synthetic approaches to lavendamycin, the CDE ring moiety is introduced using tryptophan methyl ester as building block. The application of this approach to the synthesis of lavendamycin analogues with a substituted D-ring required the availability of substituted tryptophan methyl esters. A general strategy towards the tryptophan derivatives starting with a Wittig reaction between a suitable 2-nitrobenzaldehyde precursor and 1,3-dioxolan-2- yl-methyltriphenylphosphonium bromide, followed by a two-stage, one -pot rhodium catalysed hydroformylation/reduction reaction, has been successfully developed. This methodology yielded ten different possible tryptophan precursors in moderate to good yields. The second part of the research described in this thesis included the identification of factors effecting the rate and regioselectivity of palladium catalysed methoxycarbonylation of a-olefins. The results showed that fast reactions under polar conditions give mainly linear esters. However, reactions under less polar conditions are slower, yielding mainly branched esters. Detailed analysis of the results suggest the operation of a so-called “cationic” mechanism (involving cationic palladium intermediates) in the formation of mainly linear esters, but the operation of a so-called “neutral” mechanism (involving neutral palladium intermediates) in the formation of mainly branched esters. The nature of the phosphine ligands was found to play a significant, but secondary role in determining regioselectivity of methoxycarbonylation. Another objective was the optimisation of the palladium catalysed hydroformylation of a-olefins. An evaluation of the efficiency of the palladium catalysed hydroformylation process required a comparison with the hydroformylation processes based on cobalt and rhodium. Variation of ligands (diphosphines of the type R2P(CH2)nPR2), solvents, acids, etc. had a dramatic effect on the products and the rate of the reaction. In the presence of trifluoroacetic acid 1-pentene is converted to C-6 aldehydes, while in the presence of trifluoromethanesulfonic acid 1-pentene is converted to C-11 ketones. Corresponding results were obtained with 1-octene as substrate. The palladium catalysts were found to also effect isomerisation of the a- olefin into internal olefins, but isomerisation was not a rate limiting process with respect to the hydroformylation reaction. Palladium catalysed isomerisation reactions occurred at a slower rate than the corresponding cobalt catalysed isomerisation process. However, with rhodium no isomerisation occurred. The comparison between cobalt, rhodium and palladium showed that rhodium is the best catalyst for the hydroformylation of a-olefins. The pressures and temperatures required for this process are much lower than that required for palladium and cobalt. The ligand used is triphenylphosphine, which is relatively inexpensive and non-toxic,in contrast with the more expensive ligands required for the cobalt and palladium hydroformylation processes. The use of palladium opens up the unique possibility of converting a-olefins into “dimeric” ketones, which show promise as precursors for the new class of geminidetergents. / Prof. C.W. Holzapfel

Quinoxaline-functionalized, cage-annulated oxa- and thiacrown ethers have been synthesized as possible specific metal host systems. The synthesis and characterization of quinoxaline-functionalized, cage-annulated oxa- and thiacrown ethers have been described. The characterization of these host systems have been fully achieved in solution by using various techniques such as IR, 1H NMR, and 13C NMR spectroscopic methods, high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS), elemental microanalysis, and X-ray crystallographic analysis in case of one quinoxaline-functionalized, cage-annulated oxacrown ether compound. The synthesis of the diphosphine ligand 2,3-bis(diphenylphosphino)-N-p-tolylmaleimide (bmi) is described. The substitution of the MeCN ligands in the activated cluster 1,2-Os3(CO)10(MeCN)2 by the diphosphine ligand bmi proceeds rapidly at room temperature to furnish a mixture of bridging and chelating Os3(CO)10(bmi) isomers and the ortho-metalated product HOs3(CO)9[μ-(PPh2)C=C{PPh(C6H4)}C(O)N(tolyl-p)C(O)]. Thermolysis of the bridging isomer 1,2-Os3(CO)10(bmi) under mild conditions gives the chelating isomer 1,1-Os3(CO)10(bmi), whose molecular structure has been determined by X-ray crystallography. The kinetics for the ligand isomerization have been investigated by UV-vis and 1H NMR spectroscopy in toluene solution over the temperature range of 318-348 K. On the basis of kinetic data conducted in the presence of added CO and the Eyring activation parameters, a non-dissociative phosphine migration across one of the Os-Os bonds is proposed. Orthometalation of one of the phenyl groups associated with the bmi ligand is triggered by near-UV photolysis of the chelating cluster 1,1- Os3(CO)10(bmi).

Flash photolysis techniques were applied to studies of solvent displacement by Lewis bases (L) from solvated metal carbonyl complexes of Cr, Mo, and W. On the basis of extensive studies of the reaction rate laws, activation parameters , and linear-free-energy-relationships, it was concluded that the mechanisms of solvent displacement reactions depend on the electronic and steric properties of the solvents and L, as well as the identities of the metal atoms. The strengths of solvent-metal bonding interactions, varying from ca. 7 to 16 kcal/mol, and the bonding "modes" of solvents to metals are sensitive to the structures of the solvent molecules and the identities of the metal centers. The results indicate dissociative desolvation pathways for many arene solvents in (solvent)Cr(CO)_5 (solvent = benzene, fluorobenzene, toluene, etc.) complexes, and are consistent with competitive interchange and dissociative pathways for (n-heptane)M(CO)_5. Different types of (arene)-Cr(CO)_5 interactions were suggested for chlorobenzene (CB) vs. fluorobenzene and other non-halogenated arenes, i.e. via σ-halogen-Cr bond formation in the CB solvate vs. π-arene-Cr bond formation through "isolated" double bonds in solvates of the other arenes. The data also indicate the increasing importance of interchange pathways for solvent displacement from the solvates of Mo and W vs. that of Cr.

The reaction between the formamidine ligand PriN=CHNHPri and the activated cluster Os3(CO)10(MeCN)2 has been studied. A rapid reaction is observed at room temperature, yielding the hydride clusters HOs3(CO)9[μ-OCNPriC(H)NPri] and HOs3(CO)10[μ-NPriC(H)NPri] as the principal products. The spectroscopic data and X-ray diffraction structures of those formamidinate-substituted clusters will be present. The thermal reactivity of the clusters has been investigated, with the face-capped cluster HOs3(CO)9[μ-NPriC(H)NPri] found as the sole observable product. The relationship between these three clusters has been established by kinetic studies, the results of which will be discussed.

The Parkin group has recently synthesized tris[(1-isopropylbenzimidazol-2-yl)dimethylsilyl]methane, [TismPriBenz]H, a bulky tetradentate tripodal ligand, which upon deprotonation can coordinated to form a variety of carbatrane metal complexes.The [TismPriBenz] ligand has been previously shown to stabilize metal hydride complexes, for example [TismPriBenz]MgH and [TismPriBenz]ZnH, and the ligand also has been incorporated in complexes featuring all of the non-radioactive Group 12 and Group 13 metals, as well as a large range of transition metals. However, the reactivity of these complexes towards carbonyl compounds is largely unexplored. Additionally, beyond [TismPriBenz]Li, there has been no attempt to introduce the heavier alkali metals into the [TismPriBenz] framework, which could potentially provide more reactive starting materials to generate other previously inaccessible metal complexes of the ligand; for instance, prior to this report, there has been no example of a lanthanide complex of [TismPriBenz]. In Chapter 1, the reactivity of [TismPriBenz]MgH and [TismPriBenz]MgMe towards ketones, aldehydes, and esters is explored. Generally, these magnesium complexes are able to insert a C=O double bond into a Mg–Me or Mg–H bond respectively, providing access to a large class of magnesium alkoxides. Specifically, [TismPriBenz]MgR (R = H, Me) can insert benzaldehyde and benzophenone to give [TismPriBenz]MgOCRHPh or[TismPriBenz]MgOCRPh₂ respectively. Additionally, [TismPriBenz]MgMe has shown rare reactivity towards methyl ketones, in that it forms the magnesium enolate compounds [TismPriBenz]MgC(Me)=CH₂ and [TismPriBenz]MgC(Ph)=CH2 upon treatment with acetone or acetophenone. In fact, [TismPriBenz]MgC(Me)=CH₂ is only the fourth acetone enolate complex to be structurally characterized, and the first such magnesium example. In the presence of the ester compounds methyl formate and ethyl acetate, [TismPriBenz]MgH and [TismPriBenz]MgMe are able to follow the insertion of the carbonyl with immediate elimination of either an aldehyde or ketone to yield the simple alkoxides [TismPriBenz]MgOMe and [TismPriBenz]MgOEt, a reaction with little precedence in the literature. [TismPriBenz]MgMe is also able to prompt the Claisen condensation of ethyl acetate, forming the first [TismPriBenz] complex with a 6-member chelating ring, [TismPriBenz]Mg(κ²-OC(Me)HC(O)OEt). These various alkoxides have demonstrated the ability to catalyze the Tishchenko reaction, the dimerization of an aldehyde to make an ester, and have also shown promise as catalysts for hydroboration and retro-aldol reactions. Lastly, the [TismPriBenz]Mg compounds have shown interesting reactivity towards O₂, leading to the isolation of both the rare peroxide dimer {[TismPriBenz]Mg}₂(μ-O₂) and the alkyl peroxide [TismPriBenz]MgOOMe. In Chapter 2, the reactivity of the complex [TismPriBenz]Tl is further developed, providing access to previously known methyl and iodide compounds of magnesium, zinc, and cadmium. Additionally, [TismPriBenz]Tl has been shown to react directly with the alkali metals sodium, potassium, and rubidium to form the novel alkali metal complexes [TismPriBenz]M (M = Na, K, Rb). Furthermore, [TismPriBenz]Li can react with CsF to afford [TismPriBenz]Cs, completing the non-radioactive Group 1 [TismPriBenz]M series. This makes [TismPriBenz] one of only a handful of organic ligands to have structurally characterized compounds with all of the alkali metals from Li to Cs, and the only ligand that formsmonomeric complexes in each case. [TismPriBenz]K was also used as a starting material to synthesize the first [TismPriBenz] lanthanide complexes, [TismPriBenz]YbI and [TismPriBenz]YbCl₂. [TismPriBenz]YbI itself can further react with KN(SiMe₃)₂ and NaCp to give [TismPriBenz]YbN(SiMe₃)₂ and [TismPriBenz]YbCp respectively. Lastly, the ability of the [TismPriBenz]Zn halide series to form ion pair complexes was investigated. [TismPriBenz]ZnI can react with ZnI₂ to afford {[TismPriBenz]Zn}₂[Zn₃I₈], which contains the novel zinc halide species [Zn₃I₈]²⁻. Additionally, all of the [TismPriBenz]ZnX (X = Cl, Br, I) complexes are able to react with excess ZnX₂ in THF to give the series {[TismPriBenz]Zn}[Zn(THF)X₃].

No description available.

The purpose of this research was to characterize the rhodium exchanged NaX and NaY zeolites as propylene hydroformylation catalysts. Catalytic activity was measured in a differential bed reactor. Flow in situ infrared spectroscopy was used to probe the coordination chemistry of the zeolite modified rhodium carbonyls. The catalytic activity of rhodium zeolites at atmospheric pressure and between 100-150ºC was measured. The rate of n-butyraldehyde production was approximately 5x10⁻³ moles/g-Rh hr at 150°C. Regioselectivity was dependent upon pretreatment. Precarbonylation with carbon monoxide, drying with air, and heating with N₂ prior to hydroformylation conditions produced a straight to branched isomer ratio (n/i) of 1.9-2.3. Partial reduction with 10% H₂ in N₂ at 127°C lowered n/i to 1.3. Hydrogenation to propane was 3-10 times faster than the hydroformylation rate at 150°C. Catalytic activity was sensitive to cation exchange conditions. Rhodium form, pH, temperature, and salt concentration altered catalyst behavior. Only RhCl₃•3H₂O preparations on NaY zeolite produced above 80ºC, a pH above 4, and a salt concentration of 0.1N NaCl were required in order to produce an active hydroformylation catalyst. Ammine complexes did not activate under any circumstances. It was found that the degree of hydration controlled the formation of rhodium carbonyls. On NaY, the hydrated rhodium zeolite reacted with CO at 120ºC to form Rh₆(CO)₁₆. By drying the zeolite in air at 190ºC, two rhodium dicarbonyls, Rh(CO)₂(O_z)₂-NaY and Rh(CO)₂(O_z)(H₂O)-NaY, were formed. The rhodium carbonyls were reacted with n-hexyl diphenylphosphine to determine rhodium locations. Rh(CO)₂(O_z)₂-NaY was located at the surface while the other two species were located within the zeolite cages. One dicarbonyl species, Rh(CO)₂(O_z)₂-NaX, was observed on NaX. It was determined by reactions with phosphines that this species resides in the zeolite cages. Reaction intermediates identified by FTIR under hydroformylation conditions suggested that the heterogeneous catalyst proceeds through a mechanism similar to that occurring in solution. Heterogeneous reaction orders also agreed with those reported for homogeneous hydroformylations. Addition of dimethylphenylphosphine (DMP) to the rhodium zeolites significantly increased regioselectivity. Rates were slightly less than those from the unmodified rhodium carbonyls. However, the phosphine modified rhodium zeolites deactivated within 16 hours. Continuous exposure to DMP decreased the rate of deactivation. / Ph. D.

The phenomenon luminescence rigidochromism has been reported since the 1970s in tricarbonyldiimine complexes with a general formula [R(CO)3LX] using conventional unipolar diimine ligands such as 2,2;-bipyridine or 1,10-phenanthroline as L, and halogens or simple solvents as X. As a major part of this dissertation, microwave-assisted synthesis, purification, characterization and detailed photoluminescence studies of the complex fac-[ReCl(CO)3L], 1, where L = 4-[4,6-bis(3,5-dimethyl-1H-pyrazol-1-yl]-N,N-diethylbenzenamine are reported. The employment of microwaves in the preparation of 1 decreased the reaction time from 48 to 2 hours compared to the conventional reflux method. Stoichiometry variations allows for selective preparation of either a mononuclear, 1, or binuclear, fac-[Re2Cl2(CO)6], 2, complex. The photophysical properties of 1 were analyzed finding that it possesses significant luminescence rigidochromism. The steady state photoluminescence emission spectra of 1 in solution shift from 550 nm in frozen media to 610 nm when the matrix becomes fluid. Moreover, a very sensitive emission spectral analysis of 0.1 K temperatures steps shows a smooth transition through the glass transition temperature of the solvent host. Furthermore, synthetic modifications to L have attained a family of ambipolar compounds that have tunable photophysical, thermophysical and other material properties that render them promising candidates for potential applications in organic electronics and/or sensors - either as is or for their future complexes with various transition metals and lanthanides.

No description available.