Synthesis, characterisation, and reactivity of transition metal carbonyl clusters containing an interstitial phosphorus in a trigonal co-ordination environment: the X-ray structures of [PPh3Me][Os6(CO)18P] and [Os6(CO)18P(AuPPh3)

Abstract

Thermolysis of [Os6H2(CO)21(PH)](1) or [Os6H(CO)21(PH)]–(2) results in the closing up of the cluster framework to afford the interstitial phosphide clusters [Os6H(CO)18P](3) and [Os6H(CO)18P]–(4), respectively; treatment of (3) with X–(X = Cl, Br) also gives the anion (4), while both (3) and (4) react with [AuPPh3]+ to yield [Os6(CO)18P(AuPPh3)](6); X-ray analyses of (4) and (6) show that they contain a phosphide-centred trigonal prismatic metallic core.