Enzymes exert control
over the reactivity of metal centers with
precise tuning of the secondary coordination sphere of active sites.
One particularly elegant illustration of this principle is in the
controlled delivery of proton and electron equivalents in order to
activate abundant but kinetically inert oxidants such as O
2
for oxidative chemistry. Chemists have drawn inspiration from biology
in designing molecular systems where the secondary coordination sphere
can shuttle protons or electrons to substrates. However, a biomimetic
activation of O
2
requires the transfer of both protons
and
electrons, and molecular systems where ancillary ligands
are designed to provide both of these equivalents are comparatively
rare. Here, we report the use of a dihydrazonopyrrole (DHP) ligand
complexed to Fe to perform exactly such a biomimetic activation of
O
2
. In the presence of O
2
, this complex directly
generates a high spin Fe(III)-hydroperoxo intermediate which features
a DHP
•
ligand radical via ligand-based transfer
of an H atom. This system displays oxidative reactivity and ultimately
releases hydrogen peroxide, providing insight on how secondary coordination
sphere interactions influence the evolution of oxidizing intermediates
in Fe-mediated aerobic oxidations.