Fluxional Process Research Articles

Dynamic Structural Fluxionality in a Planar Tetracoordinate Carbon Cluster Stabilized by Boron Ligands.

The design of boron-based molecular rotors stems from boron-carbon binary clusters containing multiple planar hypercoordinate carbons (phCs, such as C2B8). However, the design of boron-coordinated phCs is challenging due to boron's tendency to occupy hypercoordinate centers more than carbon. Although this challenge has been addressed, the designed clusters of interest have not exhibited dynamic fluxionality similar to that of the initial C2B8. To address this issue, we report a σ/π doubly aromatic CB2H5 + cluster, the first global minimum containing a boron-coordinated planar tetracoordinate carbon atom with dynamic fluxionality. Dynamics simulations show that two ligand H atoms exhibit alternate rotation, resulting in an intriguing dynamic fluxionality in this cluster. Electronic structure analysis reveals the flexible bonding positions of the ligand H atoms because they do not participate in π delocalized bonding nor bond to any other non-carbon atom, highlighting this rotational fluxionality. Unprecedentedly, the fluxional process involves not only the usual conversion of the number of bonding atoms, but also the type of bonding (3c π bonds ↔4c σ bonds), which is an uncommon fluxional mechanism. The cluster represents an effort to apply phC species to molecular machines.

CBe2 H5 - : Unprecedented 2σ/2π Double Aromaticity and Dynamic Structural Fluxionality in a Planar Tetracoordinate Carbon Cluster.

A 14-electron ternary anionic CBe2 H5 - cluster containing a planar tetracoordinate carbon (ptC) atom is designed herein. Remarkably, it can be stabilized by only two beryllium atoms with both π-acceptor/σ-donor properties and two hydrogen atoms, which means that the conversion from planar methane (transition state) to ptC species (global minimum) requires the substitution of only two hydrogen atoms. Moreover, two ligand H atoms exhibit alternate rotation, giving rise to interesting dynamic fluxionality in this cluster. The electronic structure analysis reveals the flexible bonding positions of ligand H atoms due to C-H localized bonds, highlighting the rotational fluxionality in the cluster, and two CBe2 3c-2e delocalized bonds endow its rare 2σ/2π double aromaticity. Unprecedentedly, the fluxional process exhibits a conversion in the type of bonding (σ bond↔π bond), which is an uncommon fluxional mechanism. The cluster can be seen as an attempt to apply planar hypercoordinate carbon species to molecular motors.

Ruthenium polyhydrides supported by rigid PCP pincer ligands: dynamic behaviour and reactions with CO2.

Two rigid β-elimination immune PCcarbeneP pincer ligands, differing in their electron donor properties by variation of the substitution pattern on the aromatic linker arms, were complexed to ruthenium to form the dichlorides LRRuCl2 (R = H or NMe2). These compounds were converted to hydrido chlorides by treatment with dihydrogen (H2) and a base. By converting to tert-butoxide derivatives in situ under an atmosphere of H2, the poly hydride PCalkylP complexes LHRRu(H)3 compounds were generated. In these complexes, H2 has added across the RuC bond in the PCcarbeneP starting materials. The polyhydrides are dynamic in solution and extensive NMR studies helped to elucidate the speciation and fluxional processes operative in this dynamic system. The polyhydride complexes react rapidly with CO2 to give the PCcarbeneP formato hydride complexes LRRu(H)-κ2-O2CH. For R = H, the 1,2-hydride shift from the anchoring alkyl of the PCalkylP carbon to the metal is reversible, but for R = NMe2 it is irreversible. The CO2 incorporated into the formato ligand of these compounds exchanges with free CO2via a bimolecular mechanism that is more rapid for R = NMe2 than for R = H; plausible explanations for this observation are proffered. Experiments designed to evaluate the efficacy of the R = NMe2 formato hydride complex as a catalyst precursor for CO2 hydrogenation to formate salts reveal poor performance in comparison to state-of-the-art ruthenium-based catalysts. This is due primarily to the precipitation of a dimeric μ-κ2-κ1-CO3 carbonate complex that is not an active catalyst for the reaction.

Chirality and fluxionality in η5-CpCo[P(O)(OMe)2].3Mo(CO)2(η3-allyl) complexes

The structural characteristics of a series of compounds having the general formula LORMo(CO)2(η3-allyl), where is LOR is a Kläui ligand were examined and two fluxional processes were found to be operating. The temperature variations in the NMR are attributed to the rotation of the LOMe ligand around the Mo-Co axis and the rocking of the P=O bonds with respect to the Mo-Co axis. The synthesis of a C3 symmetric Kläui ligand based on BINOL was developed and used to prepare L(S)-BINOLMo(CO)2(η3-C3H5). The chirality induced in the ligand by the BINOL restricts the potential for one of fluxional processes.

Insights into the Fluxional Processes of Monomethylcyclohexenyl Manganese Tricarbonyl.

Multiple fluxional processes of 6-monomethylcyclohexenylmanganese tricarbonyl [(6-MeC6H8)Mn(CO)3, complex 1] and 5-monomethylcyclohexenylmanganese tricarbonyl [(5-MeC6H8)Mn(CO)3, complex 2] have been explored using density functional theory (DFT) computations. The contributions of four agostomers-1, 2, 3, and 4-to the (MeC6H8)Mn(CO)3 exchange processes were revealed. The computational results demonstrated that the 1, 2-agostic isomerization only occurred via the η4-diene hydride transition state (TS-1-2, 14.0 kcal/mol), which is consistent with the experimentally proposed high-energy exchange process (16.0 kcal/mol). Excellent agreement is observed (R2 = 0.9862) when comparing the computed and experimentally observed variable temperature 1H NMR chemical shifts. With these results, important insights into the role of agostic interaction in the homogeneous catalysis process could be made, especially with regard to transition metal catalyzed C-H activation.

New copper(I) complexes of bulky 5-substituted-2-iminopyrrolyl ligands as catalysts for azide-alkyne cycloaddition.

Five dinuclear copper(I) complexes of the type [Cu{κN,κN'-5-R-NC4H2-2-C(H)N(2,6-iPr2C6H3)}]2 (1a-e; R = 2,4,6-iPr3C6H2 (a), R = 2,6-Me2C6H3 (b), R = 3,5-(CF3)2C6H3 (c), R = 2,6-(OMe)2C6H2 (d), R = CPh3 (e)) were prepared by the reaction of the respective 5-R-2-iminopyrrolyl potassium salts KLa-e and [Cu(NCMe)4]BF4 in moderate yields. These new copper(I) complexes were characterized by NMR spectroscopy, elemental analysis and, in selected cases, by single crystal X-ray diffraction and their structural and electronic features further analyzed by DFT calculations and cyclic voltammetry, respectively. X-ray diffraction studies reveal dimeric Cu structures assembled by 2-iminopyrrolyl bridging ligands adopting a transoid conformation (complexes 1a and 1d), while complexes 1c and 1e displayed a cisoid conformation of those moieties, with respect to the Cu(I) centers. Additionally, VT-1H NMR and 1H-1H NOESY NMR experiments on complexes 1a-e exhibited complex fluxional processes in solution, assigned to a conformational inversion of the respective Cu2N4C4 metallacycles in all complexes but 1c, accompanied by a cisoid-transoid isomerization in the cases of complexes 1d,e. The Cu(I) complexes were also analyzed by cyclic voltammetry, where all complexes exhibit two oxidation processes, where the first oxidation is reversible, with the exception of 1b and 1c, which also show the highest oxidation potentials. The oxidation potentials follow clear trends related to the structural parameters of the complexes, in particular the Cu⋯Cu distance and the Cu2N4C4 macrocycles torsion angles. All new 5-substituted-2-iminopyrrolyl Cu(I) complexes 1a-e served as catalysts for azide-alkyne cycloaddition (CuAAC) reactions, being able to generate the respective 1,2,3-triazole products in yields as high as 82% and turnover frequencies (TOFs) as high as 859 h-1, after optimizing the conditions. The activity, as measured by the TOF, is in accordance with the oxidation potential of the corresponding complexes, the easier the oxidation, the higher the TOF value. Complex 1-H, where R = H, proved to be a poor catalyst for the same reactions, indicating that the 5-substitution in the ligand framework is crucial in stabilizing any potential catalytic species.

Unusual Intramolecular Motion of ReH92- in K2ReH9 Crystal: Circle Dance and Three-Arm Turnstile Mechanisms Revealed by Computational Studies.

The nonahydridorhenate dianion ReH92- is a unique rhenium polyhydride complex due to its remarkably high coordination number; however, its detailed polytopal rearrangement process in either solution or crystal is so far unclear. In this work, our quantum chemical calculations have identified two previously unreported fluxional mechanisms for the ReH92- dianion in the K2ReH9 crystal: three-arm turnstile rotation and circle dance mechanism. These two polytopal rearrangements in the crystal offer an alternative interpretation to the pulse and wide-line NMR spectra (Farrar et al. J. Chem. Phys. 1969, 51, 3595). The previously postulated hindered rotation of the whole ReH92- dianion in K2ReH9 (White et al. J. Chem. Soc., Faraday Trans. 2 1972, 68, 1414) turns out to be a combination of the above-mentioned two elementary fluxional processes. In addition, our calculations have confirmed the Muetterties' D3h⇌C4v rearrangement as the intramolecular motion for the ReH92- dianion in solution.

Allylnickel(II) complexes of bulky 5-substituted-2-iminopyrrolyl ligands

The optimized reaction between [Ni(COD)2] (COD = 1,5-cyclooctadiene) and ligand precursor 5-(2,4,6-triisopropylphenyl)-2-[N-(2,6-diisopropylphenyl)-formimino]-1H-pyrrole yielded the η3-cyclooctenyl-Ni(II) complex [Ni{κ2N,N’-5-(2,4,6-iPr3C6H2)-NC4H2-2-C(H) = N(2,6-iPr2C6H3)}(η3-C8H13)] 1. Subsequently, the η3-allyl complexes [Ni{κ2N,N’-5-R-NC4H2-2-C(H)=N(2,6-iPr2C6H3)}(η3-C3H5)] (R = 3,5-(CF3)2C6H3 (2a), 2,6-Me2C6H3 (2b), 2,4,6-iPr3C6H2 (2c) and CPh3 (2d)) were prepared in good yields via metathesis of [Ni(η3-C3H5)(µ-Br)]2 with the respective potassium 5-R-2-[N-(2,6-diisopropylphenyl)formimino]pyrrolyl salt (KLa-d). Complexes 1 and 2a-d were characterized by NMR spectroscopy, elemental analysis and complex 2d further analyzed by single crystal X-ray diffraction. Addition of excess pyridine to solutions of complexes 2a-d led to the observation of a fluxional process that, according to VT-NMR experiments, corresponds to a pyridine-assisted cis–trans isomerization process occurring in these complexes, via a η3-η1-η3 haptotropic shift of the allyl ligand, with ΔG‡ values in range of 9.5–17.3 kcal mol−1. Additionally, complexes 2a-d, when activated by B(C6F5)3, slowly catalyzed the isomerization of hex-1-ene to mixtures of internal olefins.

Strained Ruthenium Complexes Bearing Tridentate Guanidine‐Derived Ligands

AbstractThe dimer [{(η6‐p‐cymene)RuCl}2(μ‐Cl)2] (cymene=MeC6H4iPr) reacts with N,N′‐bis(p‐tolyl)‐N′′‐(2‐pyridinylmethyl)guanidine (H2L1) and N,N′‐bis(p‐tolyl)‐N′′‐(2‐diphenylphosphanoethyl)guanidine (H2L2), in the presence of NaSbF6, giving rise to chlorido compounds of formula [(η6‐p‐cymene)RuCl(H2L)][SbF6] (H2L=H2L1 (1), H2L2 (2)) in which the guanidine ligand adopts a κ2 chelate coordination mode. The related ligand (S)‐N,N′‐bis(p‐tolyl)‐N′′‐(1‐isopropyl, 2‐diphenylphosphano ethyl)guanidine (H2L3) affords mixtures of the corresponding chlorido compound [(η6‐p‐cymene)RuCl(H2L3)][SbF6] (3) together with the complexes [(η6‐p‐cymene)RuCl2(H3L3)][SbF6] (4) and [(η6‐p‐cymene)Ru(κ3N,N′,P‐HL3)][SbF6] (10) which contain phosphano‐guanidinium and phosphano‐guanidinate ions acting as monodentate and tridentate ligand, respectively. Compounds 1, 2 and mixture of 3/4/10 react with AgSbF6 rendering the cationic aqua‐complexes [(η6‐p‐cymene)Ru(H2L)(OH2)][SbF6]2 (H2L=H2L1 (5), H2L2 (6), H2L3 (7)). These aqua‐complexes exhibit a temperature‐dependent fluxional process in solution. Experimental NMR studies and DFT theoretical calculations on complex 6 suggest that the process involves the exchange between two rotamers around one of the C−N guanidine bonds. Treatment of 5–7 with NaHCO3 renders the complexes [(η6‐p‐cymene)Ru(κ3N,N′,N′′‐HL1)][SbF6] (8) and [(η6‐p‐cymene)Ru(κ3N,N′,P‐HL)][SbF6] (HL=HL2 (9), HL3 (10)), respectively, in which the HL ligand adopts a fac κ3 coordination mode. The new complexes have been characterized by analytical and spectroscopic means, including the determination of the crystal structures of the compounds 1, 2, 5, 9 and 10, by X‐ray diffractometric methods.

Benchmarking the Fluxional Processes of Organometallic Piano-Stool Complexes.

The correlation consistent Composite Approach for transition metals (ccCA-TM) and density functional theory (DFT) computations have been applied to investigate the fluxional mechanisms of cyclooctatetraene tricarbonyl chromium ((COT)Cr(CO)3) and 1,3,5,7-tetramethylcyclooctatetraene tricarbonyl chromium, molybdenum, and tungsten ((TMCOT)M(CO)3 (M = Cr, Mo, and W)) complexes. The geometries of (COT)Cr(CO)3 were fully characterized with the PBEPBE, PBE0, B3LYP, and B97-1 functionals with various basis set/ECP combinations, while all investigated (TMCOT)M(CO)3 complexes were fully characterized with the PBEPBE, PBE0, and B3LYP methods. The energetics of the fluxional dynamics of (COT)Cr(CO)3 were examined using the correlation consistent Composite Approach for transition metals (ccCA-TM) to provide reliable energy benchmarks for corresponding DFT results. The PBE0/BS1 results are in semiquantitative agreement with the ccCA-TM results. Various transition states were identified for the fluxional processes of (COT)Cr(CO)3. The PBEPBE/BS1 energetics indicate that the 1,2-shift is the lowest energy fluxional process, while the B3LYP/BS1 energetics (where BS1 = H, C, O: 6-31G(d′); M: mod-LANL2DZ(f)-ECP) indicate the 1,3-shift having a lower electronic energy of activation than the 1,2-shift by 2.9 kcal mol−1. Notably, PBE0/BS1 describes the (CO)3 rotation to be the lowest energy process, followed by the 1,3-shift. Six transition states have been identified in the fluxional processes of each of the (TMCOT)M(CO)3 complexes (except for (TMCOT)W(CO)3), two of which are 1,2-shift transition states. The lowest-energy fluxional process of each (TMCOT)M(CO)3 complex (computed with the PBE0 functional) has a ΔG‡ of 12.6, 12.8, and 13.2 kcal mol−1 for Cr, Mo, and W complexes, respectively. Good agreement was observed between the experimental and computed 1H-NMR and 13C-NMR chemical shifts for (TMCOT)Cr(CO)3 and (TMCOT)Mo(CO)3 at three different temperature regimes, with coalescence of chemically equivalent groups at higher temperatures.

New chiral thioether-phosphite ligands and their rhodium-coordination chemistry: steric and electronic properties, dynamic processes and application in catalysis

Thioether-phosphite ligands (SP’s) with axially chiral (S)-H0- or (S)-H8-binaphthyl moiety and their [Rh(COD)(SP)]BF4 complexes have been synthesized to study their coordination chemistry and catalytic features and to compare them to those of the structurally analogous phosphine-phosphites (PP’s). NMR exchange studies on [Rh(COD)(SP)]BF4 complexes showed selective 1,5-cyclooctadiene dynamics. Firm evidence has been found that this fluxional process involves dissociation of the Rh-sulfur bond. Based on in situ NMR studies, SP ligands can form two types of bis-ligated species at ligand-to-metal ratio higher than 1. Unlike bis-ligated phosphine-phosphite complexes, bis-ligated thioether-phosphite Rh-complexes can efficiently catalyze asymmetric hydrogenation reactions due to their distinct coordination chemistry.

Water binding stabilizes stacked conformations of ferrocene containing sheet-like aromatic oligoamides.

While water clusters play an essential role in the stability of biological structures, their ability to stabilize synthetic oligomers is less understood. We have synthesized a heptameric sheet-like aromatic oligoamide foldamer with ferrocene as turn unit. It shows strong interactions with water in the solid state and in solution. The water binding limits the fluxional processes resulting from the flexible ferrocene unit, highlighting the importance of such interactions for conformational studies on this class of molecule.

Comparative study of fluxional processes at two different classes of eight-coordinate rhenium(V) polyhydride complexes

Two different structural types of dodecahedral rhenium(V) tetrahydride complexes were identified as capable of providing insight into a pseudorotational exchange of ligands at such complexes. One type of complex afforded an inequivalent set of NMR-active phosphorus atoms that occupy B sites in the rhenium coordination sphere along with four hydride ligands in the dodecahedral A sites. A second type of complex afforded the potential to inhibit the pseudorotational exchange of ligands at such complexes due to the presence of a chelating bidentate ligand. A pair of each type of complexes were studied by variable temperature NMR measurements and simulation of those measurements. The first type of complex exhibited pseudorotation of both the A site hydride ligands and the B site triphenylphosphine ligands. The first type of complexes also exhibited a pairwise exchange of the two inequivalent hydride ligands on the complexes. The second type of complex did not exhibit pseudorotational exchange of the A site hydride ligands, presumably due to the chelating bidentate ligand bound to rhenium. Instead, the A site hydride ligands of the second type of complex exhibited only exchange with the single B site hydride ligand through either a pairwise or a turnstile type of mechanism. Neither type of complex exhibited any direct intermolecular exchange of protons from the hydride ligand set with adventitious water from the solvent matrix. The value of ΔG‡240 for each of the identified fluxional processes was close to 12 kcal/mol. The values of ΔS‡ for each fluxional process suggest that none of the processes are dissociative in nature.

Synthesis and Ethylene Reactivity of Dinuclear Iron and Cobalt Complexes Supported by Macrocyclic Bis(pyridine-diimine) Ligands Containing o-Terphenyl Linkers

The synthesis and ethylene reactivity of a new family of dinuclear Co2Br4 and Fe2Br4 complexes supported by binucleating macrocyclic bis(pyridine-diimine) (PDI) ligands that contain 4,4″-R2-3,3″-o-terphenyl linkers (1, R = H; 2, R = Me; 3, R = iPr) are described. In the solid state, (1–3)M2Br4 (M = Zn, Fe, Co) adopt Cs-skew-syn structures in which the (PDI)M planes are skewed 49–82° relative to each other and both middle rings of the o-terphenyl bridges are on the same side of the molecule. The metal–metal distances range between 5.7600(8) and 6.232(1) Å. In solution, (1)M2Br4 (M = Zn, Co, Fe) undergo a fluxional process that permutes the two inequivalent (PDI)M units, while (2)M2Br4 and (3)M2Br4 are static and adopt Cs-symmetric structures similar to those observed in the solid state. Activation of (2)Fe2Br4 and (3)Fe2Br4 with MMAO-12 or triisobutylaluminum (TIBA) in the presence of ethylene generates catalysts that produce solid polyethylene (Mw = 4500–280000 Da), which contrasts with the reported production of α-olefins by analogous mononuclear (PDI)FeCl2 catalysts. (3)Fe2Br4/TIBA and (3)Fe2Br4/MMAO-12 produce polyethylenes with broad molecular weight distributions (MWDs) due to chain transfer to Al. (3)Co2Br4/1000 TIBA and (3)Co2Br4/1000 MMAO-12 also produce polyethylenes with broad MWDs. However, in these cases chain transfer to Al is not operative and the broad MWDs result from multisite behavior.

Describing Polytopal Rearrangements of Fluxional Molecules with Curvilinear Coordinates Derived from Normal Vibrational Modes: A Conceptual Extension of Cremer-Pople Puckering Coordinates.

In this work a new curvilinear coordinate system is presented for the comprehensive description of polytopal rearrangements of N-coordinate compounds (N = 4-7) and systems containing an N-coordinate subunit. It is based on normal vibrational modes and a natural extension of the Cremer-Pople puckering coordinates ( J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1975, 97, 1354) together with the Zou-Izotov-Cremer deformation coordinates ( J. Phys. Chem. A 2011, 115, 8731) for ring structures to N-coordinate systems. We demonstrate that the new curvilinear coordinates are ideal reaction coordinates describing fluxional rearrangement pathways by revisiting the Berry pseudorotation and the lever mechanism in sulfur tetrafluoride, the Berry pseudorotation and two Muetterties' mechanisms in pentavalent compounds, the chimeric pseudorotation in iodine pentafluoride, Bailar and Ray-Dutt twists in hexacoordinate tris-chelates as well as the Bartell mechanism in iodine heptafluoride. The results of our study reveal that this dedicated curvilinear coordinate system can be applied to most coordination compounds opening new ways for the systematic modeling of fluxional processes.

Half-sandwich complexes of osmium containing guanidine-derived ligands.

Pyridinyl- and phosphano-guanidino complexes of formula [(η6-p-cymene)OsCl(H2L)][SbF6] (cymene = MeC6H4iPr; H2L = N,N'-bis(p-Tolyl)-N''-(2-pyridinylmethyl)guanidine, H2L1 (1) and N,N'-bis(p-Tolyl)-N''-(2-diphenylphosphanoethyl)guanidine, H2L2 (2)) have been prepared from the dimer [{(η6-p-cymene)OsCl}2(μ-Cl)2] and H2L in the presence of NaSbF6. Treatment of complex 2 with HCl renders the phosphano-guanidinium complex [(η6-p-cymene)OsCl2(H3L2)][SbF6] (3). Compounds 1 and 2 react with AgSbF6 rendering the cationic aqua complexes [(η6-p-cymene)Os(H2L)(OH2)][SbF6]2 (H2L = H2L1 (4), H2L2 (5)). Addition of monodentate ligands L to compound 4 affords complexes of formula [(η6-p-cymene)Os(H2L1)L][SbF6]2 (L = py (6), 4-(NHMe)py (7), CO (8), P(OMe)3 (9)). Treatment of complexes 4 and 5 with NaHCO3 renders the monocationic complexes [(η6-p-cymene)Os(κ3N,N',N''-HL1)][SbF6] (10) and [(η6-p-cymene)Os(κ3N,N',P-HL2)][SbF6] (11), respectively, in which the HL ligand adopts a fac-κ3 coordination mode. The new complexes have been characterised by analytical and spectroscopic means, including the determination of the crystal structures of the compounds 1-4, 6, 8, and 11, by X-ray diffractometric methods. The phosphano-guanidino complexes 2 and 5 exhibit a temperature dependent fluxional process in solution. The new 18 electron complexes 1, 2, 6, and 8-10 are active catalysts for the Friedel-Crafts reaction between trans-β-nitrostyrene and N-methyl-2-methylindole. Conversions greater than 90% were obtained. Proton NMR studies support a mechanism involving the Brønsted-acid activation of trans-β-nitrostyrene through the NH functionalities of the coordinated guanidine ligands.

Investigating Chain Dynamics in Highly Crosslinked Polymers using Solid‐State 1H NMR Spectroscopy

ABSTRACTSolid state 1H NMR line‐shape analysis and (double quantum) DQ 1H NMR experiments have been used to investigate the segmental and polymer chain dynamics as a function of temperature for a series of thermosetting epoxy resins produced using different diamine curing agents. In these thermosets, chemical crosslinks introduce topological constraints leading to residual stresses during curing. Materials containing a unique ferrocene‐based diamine (FcDA) curing agent were evaluated to address the role of the ferrocene fluxional process on the atomic‐level polymer dynamics. At temperatures above the glass transition temperature (Tg), the DQ 1H NMR experiments provided a measure of the relative effective crosslink and entanglement densities for these materials and revealed significant polymer chain dynamic heterogeneity in the FcDA‐cured thermosets. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2019, 57, 1143–1156

Fluxional Bonds in Tubular Molecular Rotors B3-[Ta@B18] and B4-[Ta@B18]+ in 18-Electron Configurations

Boron and metal-doped boron nanoclusters possess unique fluxional behaviors in dynamics. Detailed bonding analyses performed in this work indicate that, similar to the experimentally observed B2-[Ta@B18]− (1), the theoretically predicted tubular molecular rotors B3-[Ta@B18] (2) and B4-[Ta@B18]+ (3) possess typical fluxional 4c–2e and 3c–2e σ-bonds atop the Ta-centered [Ta@B18] double-ring tube between the Bn unit (n = 3, 4) and upper B9 ring, unveiling the fluxional bonding nature of the Bn-[Ta@B18]q complex series (n = 2–4, q = n − 3) which follow the 18-electron rule in different charge states. Chiral conversions via pseudo-rotations are observed in the fluxional processes between the Bn unit (n = 3, 4) and Ta-centered [Ta@B18] double-ring tube.

Room Temperature Acceptorless Alkane Dehydrogenation from Molecular σ-Alkane Complexes.

The non-oxidative catalytic dehydrogenation of light alkanes via C–H activation is a highly endothermic process that generally requires high temperatures and/or a sacrificial hydrogen acceptor to overcome unfavorable thermodynamics. This is complicated by alkanes being such poor ligands, meaning that binding at metal centers prior to C–H activation is disfavored. We demonstrate that by biasing the pre-equilibrium of alkane binding, by using solid-state molecular organometallic chemistry (SMOM-chem), well-defined isobutane and cyclohexane σ-complexes, [Rh(Cy2PCH2CH2PCy2)(η:η-(H3C)CH(CH3)2][BArF4] and [Rh(Cy2PCH2CH2PCy2)(η:η-C6H12)][BArF4] can be prepared by simple hydrogenation in a solid/gas single-crystal to single-crystal transformation of precursor alkene complexes. Solid-gas H/D exchange with D2 occurs at all C–H bonds in both alkane complexes, pointing to a variety of low energy fluxional processes that occur for the bound alkane ligands in the solid-state. These are probed by variable temperature solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance experiments and periodic density functional theory (DFT) calculations. These alkane σ-complexes undergo spontaneous acceptorless dehydrogenation at 298 K to reform the corresponding isobutene and cyclohexadiene complexes, by simple application of vacuum or Ar-flow to remove H2. These processes can be followed temporally, and modeled using classical chemical, or Johnson–Mehl–Avrami–Kologoromov, kinetics. When per-deuteration is coupled with dehydrogenation of cyclohexane to cyclohexadiene, this allows for two successive KIEs to be determined [kH/kD = 3.6(5) and 10.8(6)], showing that the rate-determining steps involve C–H activation. Periodic DFT calculations predict overall barriers of 20.6 and 24.4 kcal/mol for the two dehydrogenation steps, in good agreement with the values determined experimentally. The calculations also identify significant C–H bond elongation in both rate-limiting transition states and suggest that the large kH/kD for the second dehydrogenation results from a pre-equilibrium involving C–H oxidative cleavage and a subsequent rate-limiting β-H transfer step.

Mechanisms and Beyond: Elucidation of Fluxional Dynamics by Exchange NMR Spectroscopy.

Detailed mechanistic information is crucial to our understanding of reaction pathways and selectivity. Dynamic exchange NMR techniques, in particular 2D exchange spectroscopy (EXSY) and its modifications, provide indispensable intricate information on the mechanisms of organic and inorganic reactions and other phenomena, for example, the dynamics of interfacial processes. In this Review, key results from exchange NMR studies of small molecules over the last few decades are systemised and discussed. After a brief introduction to the theory, the key types of dynamic processes are identified and fundamental examples given of intra- and intermolecular reactions, which, in turn, could involve, or not, bond-making and bond-breaking events. Following that logic, internal molecular rotation, intramolecular stereomutation and molecular recognition will first be considered because they do not typically involve bond breaking. Then, rearrangements, substitution-type reactions, cyclisations, additions and other processes affecting chemical bonds will be discussed. Finally, interfacial molecular dynamics and unexpected combinations of different types of fluxional processes will also be highlighted. How exchange NMR spectroscopy helps to identify conformational changes, coordination and molecular recognition processes as well as quantify reaction energy barriers and extract detailed mechanistic information by using reaction rate theory in conjunction with computational techniques will be shown.