Homogeneously catalysed reactions can be 'switched on' by activating latent catalysts. Usually, activation is brought about by heat or an external chemical agent. However, activation of homogeneous catalysts with a mechanical trigger has not been demonstrated. Here, we introduce a general method to activate latent catalysts by mechanically breaking bonds between a metal and one of its ligands. We have found that silver(I) complexes of polymer-functionalized N-heterocyclic carbenes, which are latent organocatalysts, catalyse a transesterification reaction when exposed to ultrasound in solution. Furthermore, ultrasonic activation of a ruthenium biscarbene complex with appended polymer chains results in catalysis of olefin metathesis reactions. In each case, the catalytic activity results from ligand dissociation, brought about by transfer of mechanical forces from the polymeric substituents to the coordination bond. Mechanochemical catalyst activation has potential applications in transduction and amplification of mechanical signals, and mechanically initiated polymerizations hold promise as a novel repair mechanism in self-healing materials.

The ultrasound-induced scission of silver carbene coordination complexes with polytetrahydrofuran-functionalized N-heterocyclic carbene ligands is reported. In solution, scission is very efficient, with complete conversion within 10 min when the polymers have a molecular weight of 6.7 kDa. The mechanochemical origin of the scission is supported by the molecular weight dependence of the scission rate and by the low reactivity of the silver complex with low molecular weight ligands. The mechanochemical process at room temperature is much faster than thermal scission at 60 degreesC, which has a conversion of 30% in 18 h.

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[reaction: see text] The template effect exerted by tetrathiafulvalene (TTF) in the ring-closure reaction of the trication 5(3+) yielding cyclobis(paraquat-p-phenylene) has been quantitatively evaluated in acetonitrile at 62 degrees C with UV-vis spectrophotometry. The rate of ring closure of the trication 5(3+) largely increases in the presence of the template (a maximum increase of ca. 80 times at [TTF] approximately 0.14 M). The results are compared with those of other aromatic templates, 2 and 3, that were provided with polyethereal sidearms and indicate that the template ability of tetrathiafulvalene is comparable or better than that of the others.