Synthetic Development and Chemical Reactivity of Transition-Metal
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Acc. Chem. Res. 2007, 40, 712–719 more stable for the lighter, second period elements.3 Synthetic Development and Further investigation of this concept contributed to the Chemical Reactivity of discovery of silicone polymers and eventually to the discovery of the first compounds with double bonds to Transition-Metal Silylene silicon, silenes and disilenes.4 Whereas much of the exploration of silicon has been patterned after the “blue- Complexes print” of known carbon chemistry, this research has RORY WATERMAN, PAUL G. HAYES, AND consistently revealed marked differences between the two T. DON TILLEY* elements and has led to an appreciation for the novel and Department of Chemistry, University of California, useful properties of silicon-based materials. Berkeley, California 94720-1460 Potential carbon–silicon analogies have also motivated Received February 8, 2007 the development of transition-metal–silicon chemistry. In particular, one such potential relationship has led to height- ABSTRACT ened curiosity over metal silylene complexes, LnMSiR2, A variety of transition-metal complexes with terminal silylene which may possess metal–silicon multiple-bond character ligands have become available in recent years, because of the discovery of several preparative methods. In particular, three and exhibit reactivity patterns analogous to those of the well- general synthetic routes to these complexes have emerged, on the known carbene and alkylidene complexes.5 Transition-metal basis of anionic group abstraction, coordination of a free silylene, silylene complexes are also of interest as postulated inter- and R-hydrogen migration. The direct transformation of organosi- lanes to silylene ligands at a metal center (silylene extrusion) has mediates in a number of metal-catalyzed transformations 6–8 also been observed, and this has further spurred the exploration involving organosilicon compounds. Although metal com- of silylenes as ligands. This Account describes the synthetic plexes of this type have been synthetic targets since the development of silylene ligands in our laboratory and resulting 1960s, they have been realized as definitively isolated investigations of stoichiometric and catalytic chemistry for these species. compounds for only a little less than 15 years. Early, unsuccessful attempts to synthesize silylene complexes produced evidence that these compounds are inherently Introduction very reactive, and heightened interest in the generation of stable examples. Significant progress finally came in 1987 The close relationship of carbon and silicon in the periodic with reports of two so-called base-stabilized silyl- table has inspired many attempts to observe chemical ene complexes, (CO) FeSi(OtBu) [OP(NMe ) ](1) and parallels between these two elements. Thus, some of the 4 2 2 3 [Cp*(Me P) RuSiPh (NCMe)]+ (2).9–11 While such species earliest research on silicon chemistry sought to develop 3 2 2 may reversibly dissociate the base to provide kinetic access pathways to diverse arrays of catenated structures similar to a base-free silylene complex, the ground-state structures to those observed for carbon.1 Whereas this endeavor did not prove fruitful, it established the high reactivity of appear to involve considerable metal–silicon single-bond character (and sp3 silicon), with the positive charge localized simple hydrosilanes, such as SiH4, and foreshadowed the discovery of polysilanes with σ-conjugated silicon back- primarily on the silicon-bound base. Currently, there are bones.2 Early attempts to prepare multiply bonded com- several established routes to base-free silylene complexes pounds of silicon, analogous to those observed for carbon, bearing a variety of substituents at silicon. This synthetic helped fortify the idea that multiple bonds are inherently accessibility to silylene complexes has allowed explorations of their structural, spectroscopic, chemical, and catalytic properties. In this Account, we describe the evolution of Rory Waterman completed his B.S. degree in chemistry at the University of Rochester in 1999. In 2004, he earned a Ph.D. degree in chemistry at The University metal silylene complexes in our laboratories, from a synthetic of Chicago under Professor Gregory L. Hillhouse, studying the organometallic novelty to accessible species that engage in unusual sto- chemistry of three-coordinate nickel complexes. From 2004 to 2006, he was a ichiometric and catalytic transformations. Miller Institute for Basic Research in Science Research Fellow in the laboratories of Professor T. Don Tilley, investigating R elimination and E–H bond activation chemistry. He is currently Assistant Professor of Chemistry at the University of Vermont, with interests in synthetic inorganic and organometallic chemistry, * To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: catalysis, and metal–ligand multiple bonding. [email protected]. Paul G. Hayes was awarded a B.Sc. (honors) degree from Mount Allison T. Don Tilley received his B.S. degree from the University of Texas, Austin, in University in 1999. In 2004, he completed his Ph.D. research on cationic 1977. In 1982, he earned his Ph.D. degree at the University of California, Berkeley, organoscandium complexes under the tutelage of Professor Warren Piers at with R. A. Andersen, studying organometallic lanthanide chemistry. In 1982–1983, the University of Calgary. During his time in Calgary, he was awarded NSERC he participated in a NSF-sponsored postdoctoral exchange program, working and Sir Izaak Walton Killam Doctoral Fellowships as well as a Ralph Steinhauer with Professors Robert Grubbs and John Bercaw at Caltech and with Professors Award of Distinction. In 2004, he undertook a NSERC Postdoctoral Fellowship in Luigi Venanri and Piero Pino at the ETH in Zu¨rich, Switzerland. He started his the laboratories of Professor T. Don Tilley, where he developed new routes to independent career at the University of California, San Diego, in 1983 and rose transition-metal silylyne and stannylyne complexes. He recently joined the to the rank of Professor of Chemistry before moving to his current positions as Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of Lethbridge as an Professor of Chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley, and Senior Assistant Professor; his current research interests include synthetic and Scientist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (1994). His research interests mechanistic organometallic chemistry, with a particular focus on the development include synthetic, structural, catalytic, and mechanistic investigations in inorganic of new chemical transformations and catalysis. and organometallic chemistry. 712 ACCOUNTS OF CHEMICAL RESEARCH / VOL. 40, NO. 8, 2007 10.1021/ar700028b CCC: $37.00 2007 American Chemical Society Published on Web 05/03/2007 Transition-Metal Silylene Complexes Waterman et al. Scheme 1. Synthetic Routes to Silylene Complexes Synthetic Routes to Silylene Complexes is tolerant of an array of silicon substituents and has been successfully employed with metals from groups 8, 9, and Transition-metal silylene compounds of the type L MSiRR′ n 10.14 Of course, this approach necessarily produces a possess three-coordinate silicon centers and characteristic cationic (and more electrophilic) silylene complex. low-field 29Si nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) chemical shifts in the range of δ 200–370. A common feature of silylene A second type of silylene complex has become available compounds is the Lewis acidity of the silicon center. This with the discovery of isolable, free silylenes, in which the π represents an unusual situation, because Lewis acidic centers divalent silicon center is stabilized by donation from are rarely found as donor atoms in transition-metal com- two nitrogen substituents. The coordination complexes plexes. As will be illustrated, this pairing of an acidic silicon of these silylenes appear to be distinct from those men- tioned above, as indicated by their significantly higher center with a transition metal accounts for much of the 29 observed reaction chemistry. An archetypical reaction type field Si NMR chemical shifts (97.5–146.9 ppm), which for silylene complexes is the coordination of a Lewis base are similar to resonances previously observed for base- ) stabilized silylene complexes of the type LnMSiR2(B) (B to the low-valent silicon center. A representative ex- 15,16 ample of such coordination is the reaction of two-electron donor). Also, complexes of stable, free [Cp*(Me P) RudSi(SR) ][BPh ](3a,R) p-tol; 3b,R) Et) silylenes appear to be weakly Lewis acidic at silicon, 3 2 2 4 ′ with acetonitrile to form the base-stabilized silylene com- whereas the previously described LnMSiRR examples 12 usually bind strongly to Lewis bases. These remarkably plex [Cp*(Me3P)2RuSiR2(NCCH3)][BPh4](4a and 4b;eq1). The reverse reaction, whereby a Lewis base is lost from a stable silylenes have been the subject of thorough reviews, and their coordination chemistry will not be discussed base-complexed silylene ligand to afford the terminal silylene 15 ligand has not been directly observed, but there is consider- here. However, it should be noted that the strategy of able kinetic evidence for this dissociation process.13 capturing a thermally unstable silylene fragment with a metal center is also possible. Low-valent platinum species ) i L2Pt (L Pr3P and Cy3P) have been shown to intercept photochemically generated dimesitylsilylene to form the terminal three-coordinate Pt–silylene complexes d ) L2Pt SiMes2 (Scheme 1;