Activation of atmospherically abundant
dinitrogen (N2) by metal-free species under mild reaction
conditions has been one
of the most challenging areas in chemistry for decades. Very recent
but limited progress in N2 activation by boron species,
including two-coordinated borylene and methyleneborane and three-coordinated
borole and borane, has been made toward metal-free N2 activation.
Here, we systematically probe an experimentally viable frustrated
Lewis pair (FLP) containing two moieties (methyleneborane and carbene)
for N2 activation via density functional theory (DFT) calculations,
which has proven to be an efficient approach for N2 activation
in a thermodynamically and kinetically favorable manner. Aromaticity
is found to play a crucial role in stabilization of the product. This
study could be a valuable alternative for the development of metal-free
N2 activation chemistry, highlighting great potential of
FLP for N2 activation and functionalization.