A very efficient homogeneous system for visible-light driven hydrogen production in water is reported. This comprises the [Co(CR)Cl2](+) cobalt(III) tetraaza-macrocyclic complex (Cat1) as a noble metal-free catalyst, [Ru(bpy)3]Cl2 as a photosensitizer and ascorbate/ascorbic acid as a sacrificial electron donor and buffer. This system gives up to 1000 turnovers at pH 4.0 versus the catalyst with a relatively low photosensitizer/catalyst ratio (10/1) and a high concentration of catalyst (1 × 10(−4) M), thus producing a significant amount of H2 (12.3 mL for 5 mL of solution). It also exhibits long-term stability (more than 20 hours). The efficiency of Cat1 has been compared under the same experimental conditions to those of three other H2-evolving catalysts, which are known to operate in water, [Co{(DO)(DOH)pn}Br2] (Cat2), [Co(dmbpy)3]Cl2 (Cat3) and [Rh(dmbpy)2Cl2]Cl (Cat4). These comparative studies show that Cat4, although based on a noble metal, is about four times less active, while Cat2 and Cat3 produce more than one hundred times less hydrogen than Cat1. The low-valent CoI form of Cat1 has been successfully electrogenerated in CH3CN. Its high stability can be related to the high catalytic performance of the Cat1 system. We have also shown that in acidic aqueous solution (photocatalytic conditions) reduction at a slightly more negative potential than the Co(II)/Co(I) couple is needed to ensure efficient catalysis; this reduction is performed by the photogenerated [Ru(II)(bpy)2(bpy(˙−))](+) species.

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The mononuclear manganese bis-terpyridine complex [Mn(tolyl-terpy)(2)](X)(3) (1(X)(3); X=BF(4), ClO(4), PF(6); tolyl-terpy=4'-(4-methylphenyl)-2,2':6',2"-terpyridine), containing Mn in the unusual +III oxidation state, has been isolated and characterised. The 1(3+) ion is a rare example of a mononuclear Mn(III) complex stabilised solely by neutral N ligands. Complex 1(3+) is obtained by electrochemical oxidation of the corresponding Mn(II) compound 1(2+) in anhydrous acetonitrile. Under these conditions the cyclic voltammogram of 1(2+) exhibits not only the well-known Mn(II)/Mn(III) oxidation at E(1/2)=+0.91 V versus Ag/Ag(+) (+1.21 V vs. SCE) but also a second metal-based oxidation process corresponding to Mn(III)/Mn(IV) at E(1/2)=+1.63 V (+1.93 V vs. SCE). Single crystals of 1(PF(6))(3)2 CH(3)CN were obtained by an electrocrystallisation procedure. X-ray analysis unambiguously revealed its tetragonally compressed octahedral geometry and high-spin character. The electronic properties of 1(3+) were investigated in detail by magnetic measurements and theoretical calculations, from which a D value of +4.82 cm(-1) was precisely determined. Density functional and complete active space self consistent field ab initio calculations both correctly predict a positive sign of D, in agreement with the compressed tetragonal distortion observed in the X-ray structure of 1(PF(6))(3)2 CH(3)CN. The different contributions to D were calculated, and the results show that 1) the spin-orbit coupling part (+2.593 cm(-1)) is predominant compared to the spin-spin interaction (+1.075 cm(-1)) and 2) the excited triplet states make the dominant contribution to the total D value.

The ligands 11-bromodipyrido[3,2-a:2',3'-c]phenazine and ethyl dipyrido[3,2-a:2',3'-c]phenazine-11-carboxylate have been prepared and coordinated to ruthenium(II), rhenium(I), and copper(I) metal centers. The electronic effects of substitution of dipyrido[2,3-a:3',2'-c]phenazine (dppz) have been investigated by spectroscopy and electrochemistry, and some photophysical properties have been studied. The crystal structures of [Re(L)(CO)(3)Cl] (L = ethyl dipyrido[3,2-a:2',3'-c]phenazine-11-carboxylate or 11-bromodipyrido[3,2-a:2',3'-c]phenazine) are presented. Density functional theory calculations on the complexes show only small deviations in bond lengths and angles (most bonds within 0.02 Angstroms, most angles within 2 degrees) from the crystallographic data. Furthermore, the vibrational spectra of the strongest Raman and IR bands are predicted to within an average 6 cm(-1) for the complexes [Re(L)(CO)(3)Cl] and [Cu(L)(triphenylphosphine)(2)]BF(4) (in the 1000-1700 cm(-1) region). Spectroscopic and electrochemical evidence suggest that reduction of the complex causes structural changes across the entire dppz ligand. This is unusual as dppz-based ligands typically have electrochemical properties that suggest charge localization with reduction on the phenazine portion of the ligand. The excited-state lifetimes of the complexes have been measured, and they range from ca. 200 ns for the [Ru(L)(2,2'-bipyridine)(2)](PF(6))(2) complexes to over 2 mus for [Cu(11-bromodipyrido[3,2-a:2',3'-c]phenazine)(PPh(3))(2)](BF(4)) at room temperature. The emission spectra suggest that the unusually long-lived excited states of the copper complexes result from metal-to-ligand charge transfer (MLCT) transitions as they are completely quenched in methanol. Electroluminescent films may be fabricated from these compounds; they show MLCT state emission even at low doping levels [<0.1% by weight in poly(vinylcarbazole) polymer matrix].