Tracking of the formation of binuclear nickel complexes of [Ni2(µ-O2PR1R2)2(bpy)4]Br2 type by ESI and MALDI mass spectrometry

Abstract

The formation of binuclear nickel complexes of type [Ni2(µ-O2PR1R2)2(bpy)4]Br2, where R1=H, R2=phenyl (Ph), 2,4,6-trimethylphenyl (Mes), 2,4,6-triisopropylphenyl (Tipp) or R1R2=OCH2CH(Et)NHCH(Ph); bpy=2,2′-bipyridine, in solution and their fragmentation behavior have been investigated by ESI and MALDI mass spectrometry. It was found that binuclear cationic fragments [Ni2(µ-O2PR1R2)2(bpy)2Br]+ are characteristic ions displaying the formation of binuclear nickel(II) complexes in solution.