The chemistry of the carbon-transition metal double and triple bond: annual survey covering the year 1997

Abstract

This survey is intended to be a comprehensive coverage of articles which report on the synthesis, reactivity, or properties of compounds which feature a multiple bond between carbon and a transition metal. Reactions which employ metal carbene complexes as transient intermediates generated through well-established routes are not covered unless there is some effort to characterize the carbene complex intermediate. Only compounds which feature a multiple bond between one carbon atom and one transition metal are discussed in this survey, thus bridging carbene and carbyne complexes are not covered unless there is a multiple bond to one transition metal. The complexes of stable carbenes with transition metals have not been included; since the π-donation component of these complexes is minimal, there is no formal carbon–metal multiple bond (J.C. Green, R.G.; Scurr, P.R. Arnold, F.G.N., Cloke, J. Chem. Soc. Chem. Commun. (1997) 1963; A.A. Danopoulos, D.M. Hankin, G. Wilkinson, S.M. Cafferkey, T.K.N. Sweet, M.B., Hursthouse, Polyhedron 16 (1997) 3879). This survey has been divided into two sections, metal carbene (or alkylidene) complexes and metal carbyne (or alkylidyne) complexes; the carbene complex section represents the vast majority of this article. The metal carbene section has been organized according to metal, starting from the left side of the Periodic Table. A special section focusing on alkene metathesis has been included prior to the discussion of carbene complexes of individual metals. The metal carbyne section has been organized according to reaction type.