Polynuclear Complexes with Propynylidene C3-Bridges: General Synthetic Route to Bis-, Tris-, and Tetrakis(ethynylcarbene) Complexes

Abstract

The sequential reaction of two equivalents of the dimethylamino(ethynyl)carbene complexes [(CO)5M=C(NMe2)C≡CH] [M = W (1a), Cr (1b)] with two equivalents of nBuLi and one equivalent of a transition metal dichloride, [Cl2M′(Ln)], affords trinuclear biscarbene complexes of the type [(CO)5M=C(NMe2)C≡C−M′(Ln)−C≡CC(NMe)2=M(CO)5] [M′(Ln) = Ni(PEt3)2 (2a, b), Pd(PEt3)2 (3a, b), Pt(PEt3)2 (4a, b), Fe(dmpe)2 (6a), Hg (8a), Ti(η5-C5H5)2 (9a, b)] [dmpe = 1,2-bis(dimethylphosphino)ethane]. Treatment of 1a with equimolar amounts of first nBuLi and then [Cl2M′(Ln)] results in the formation of the monosubstitution products [(CO)5W=C(NMe2)C≡CM′(Ln)] [M′(Ln) = trans-Pd(PEt3)2Cl (5a), trans-Fe(dmpe)2Cl (7a)]. Additionally, the synthesis of the heterobimetallicethynylcarbene complex [(CO)5W=C(NMe2)C≡CPd(PEt3)2C≡CH] (10a), starting from 1a and [ClPd(PEt3)2C≡CH], is described. When three equivalents of 1a are treated, first with three equivalents of nBuLi and then with one equivalent of the trihalides PCl3 or BBr3, the novel tris(ethynylcarbene) complexes [{(CO)5W=C(NMe2)C≡C}3E] [E = B (11a), P (12a)] are obtained. The reaction of four equivalents of 1a,b with four equivalents of nBuLi, followed by addition of one equivalent of a group 14 tetrachloride [M′Cl4], yields the novel tetrakis(ethynylcarbene) complexes [{(CO)5M=C(NMe2)C≡C}4M′] [M′ = Si (13a, b), Ge (14a), Sn (15a, b)]. The complexes 8a, 9a, 12a, and 15a were characterized by X-ray structural analyses. All spectroscopic and structural data suggest that the carbene fragments and the central transition metal or heteroatom in these new bis-, tris-, and tetrakis(ethynylcarbene) complexes interact only weakly.