A variety of diiron bridging allenylidene complexes,
Cp*2Fe2(μ-CCCR1R2)(μ-CO)(CO)2
(3; R1, R2 = H, H (a);
Me, Me (b); n-Bu, n-Bu (c);
H, Ph (d); H, t-Bu (e); Me, Ph
(f); Me, n-Bu
(g); t-Bu, Me (h)) are prepared by (i)
addition of an excess amount of nucleophile (RLi,
LiHBEt3) to the diiron μ-ethynediyl complex
(μ-C⋮C)[FeCp*(CO)2]2
(1) in portions (one-pot
synthesis) or (ii) nucleophilic addition to the diiron
μ-acylvinylidene complex
Cp*2Fe2[μ-CC(H)C(O)R1](μ-CO)(CO)2
(2), which is also obtained from 1 (two-step
synthesis). On
the other hand, addition of an excess amount of nucleophile in
one portion produces diacyl−vinylidene complexes
Cp*2Fe2[μ-CC{C(O)R}2](CO)2(μ-CO)
(4). Hybridization of the
Fe2[μ-CCCR1R2] moiety in 3 is
similar to that in organic allene molecules, as revealed
by
X-ray crystallographic and spectroscopic analysis. Formation of
3 instead of the μ-alkenylvinylidene complex 4 (when either of R1 or
R2 bears an α-hydrogen atom) can be
interpreted in terms of steric repulsion between the bridging ligand
and the Cp* ligands.
In addition, the C−C coupling observed during the formation of
3 also proceeds in
mononuclear iron acetylide complexes,
(η5-C5R5)Fe(CO)2-C⋮C-Ph
(12) (R= H (a), Me
(b)),
upon treatment with nucleophiles (Nu) to give enone
PhCHCHC(O)Nu (13) and alkenyl
complexes,
(η5-C5R5)Fe(CO)(PPh3)C[C(O)Nu]C(H)Ph
(15) (in the presence of PPh3).
The μ-allenylidene complexes 3 turn out to be
amphoteric. Protonation of 3 takes place
at
the β-carbon atom of the μ-allenylidene bridge to give cationic
μ-vinylcarbyne species Cp*2Fe2[μ-{C−C(H)−C}+R1R2](μ-CO)(CO)2
(11; R1, R2 = H, H,
(a); Me, Me (b); H, Ph (c)),
which
have been characterized by NMR (δC(Cα)
> 450) and X-ray crystallography
(11c·BF4).
Subsequent nucleophilic addition gives a variety of functionalized
μ-vinylidene complexes
Cp*2Fe2[μ-CC(H)CR1R2Nu](μ-CO)(CO)2
(18) through addition to the γ-carbon atom.
In
contrast, nucleophilic addition to 3 takes place at the
γ-carbon atom, and μ-vinylidene complex
18 (reaction with LiHBEt3) or cyclic product
21 (reaction with n-BuLi) are obtained
after
protonolysis. Thus, it has been clarified that the electrophile
and nucleophile attack the β-
and γ-carbon atoms of the bridging allenylidene ligand, respectively.
The configuration of
the bridging ligand (X) and the Fe auxiliary ligands (Cp* and CO) in a
series of diiron bridging
hydrocarbyl complexes,
Cp*2Fe2(μ-X)(μ-CO)(CO)2
(X = allenylidene, vinylidene, and alkylidene), is also discussed on the basis of the molecular structure of
3a−c, 4,
18e,h,k, and a
μ-alkylidene complex
Cp*2Fe2[μ-C(H)CH2CH3](μ-CO)(CO)2
(19a), which are obtained in the
present study. The dinuclear complexes relieve the steric
repulsion among the X and Cp*
ligands by a combination of a stretching and twisting of the X part and
precession of the
Cp* ligands.