The acyl anion complex
[(CO)2ReC(O)CH2CH2(η5-C5H4)]-Li+
(7) in which a two-carbon tether links
the cyclopentadienyl ring to the acyl carbon was synthesized by
attachment of a 2-lithioethyl side chain to the
cyclopentadiene ring of CpRe(CO)3 followed by
intramolecular attack of the lithium reagent on a carbonyl
group.
Alkylation of 7 with
(CH3)3O+BF4
-
occurred at oxygen to give the methoxycarbene complex
(CO)2ReC(OCH3)CH2CH2(η5-C5H4)(9), which was shown by X-ray
crystallography to have significant strain associated with the
tethered
ring. Protonation of 7 gave a mixture of hydroxycarbene
complex
(CO)2ReC(OH)CH2CH2(η5-C5H4)
(2) and the
metal acyl hydride complex
trans-(CO)2HReC(O)CH2CH2(η5-C5H4)
(3). The unusual observation of the metal
acyl hydride is attributed to the two-carbon tether introducing strain
into the three-legged piano stool geometry of
2 but leaving the four-legged piano stool geometry of
3 relatively unstrained. In agreement with this
hypothesis, no
strain was apparent in the X-ray structure of the three-carbon-tethered
methoxycarbene complex (CO)2ReC(OCH3)CH2CH2CH2(η5-C5H4)
(17) and only the hydroxycarbene tautomer
(CO)2ReC(OH)CH2CH2CH2(η5-C5H4)
(18) was observed at equilibrium. A two-carbon tether
did not introduce sufficient strain into the aminocarbene
complex
(CO)2ReC[NH(CH3)]CH2CH2(η5-C5H4)
(19) to allow observation of its iminoacyl hydride
tautomer.