Insertion of Molecular Oxygen in Transition‐Metal Hydride Bonds,Oxygen‐Bond Activation,and Unimolecular Dissociation of Metal Hydroperoxide Intermediates. Short Communication

Thermal activation of molecular oxygen is observed for the late‐transition‐metal cationic complexes [M(H)(OH)]⁺ with M=Fe, Co, and Ni. Most of the reactions proceed via insertion in a metal? hydride bond followed by the dissociation of the resulting metal hydroperoxide intermediate(s) upon losses of O, OH, and H₂O. As indicated by labeling studies, the processes for the Ni complex are very specific such that the O‐atoms of the neutrals expelled originate almost exclusively from the substrate O₂. In comparison to the [M(H)(OH)]⁺ cations, the ion? molecule reactions of the metal hydride systems [MH]⁺ (M=Fe, Co, Ni, Pd, and Pt) with dioxygen are rather inefficient, if they occur at all. However, for the solvated complexes [M(H)(H₂O)]⁺ (M=Fe, Co, Ni), the reaction with O₂ involving O? O bond activation show higher reactivity depending on the transition metal: 60% for the Ni, 16% for the Co, and only 4% for the Fe complex relative to the [Ni(H)(OH)]⁺/O₂ couple.     

Metal–Organic Perovskites: Synthesis,Structures, and Magnetic Properties of [C(NH2)3][MII(HCOO)3] (M=Mn,Fe, Co,Ni, Cu,and Zn; C(NH2)3= Guanidinium)

We report the synthesis, crystal structures, and spectral, thermal, and magnetic properties of a family of metal–organic perovskite ABX₃, [C(NH₂)₃][M^II(HCOO)₃], in which A=C(NH₂)₃ is guanidinium, B=M is a divalent metal ion (Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, or Zn), and X is the formate HCOO^?. The compounds could be synthesized by either diffusion or hydrothermal methods from water or water‐rich solutions depending on the metal. The five members (Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, and Zn) are isostructural and crystallize in the orthorhombic space group Pnna, while the Cu member in Pna2₁. In the perovskite structures, the octahedrally coordinated metal ions are connected by the anti–anti formate bridges, thus forming the anionic NaCl‐type [M(HCOO)₃]^? frameworks, with the guanidinium in the nearly cubic cavities of the frameworks. The Jahn–Teller effect of Cu²⁺ results in a distorted anionic Cu–formate framework that can be regarded as Cu–formate chains through short basal Cu? O bonds linked by the long axial Cu? O bonds. These materials show higher thermal stability than other metal–organic perovskite series of [AmineH][M(HCOO)₃] templated by the organic monoammonium cations (AmineH⁺) as a result of the stronger hydrogen bonding between guanidinium and the formate of the framework. A magnetic study revealed that the five magnetic members (except Zn) display spin‐canted antiferromagnetism, with a Néel temperature of 8.8 (Mn), 10.0 (Fe), 14.2 (Co), 34.2 (Ni), and 4.6 K (Cu). In addition to the general spin‐canted antiferromagnetism, the Fe compound shows two isothermal transformations (a spin‐flop and a spin‐flip to the paramagnetic phase) within 50 kOe. The Co member possesses quite a large canting angle. The Cu member is a magnetic system with low dimensional character and shows slow magnetic relaxation that probably results from the domain dynamics.     

Dispersion Forces,Disproportionation, and Stable High‐Valent Late Transition Metal Alkyls

The transition metal tetra‐ and trinorbornyl bromide complexes, M(nor)₄ (M=Fe, Co, Ni) and Ni(nor)₃Br (nor=1‐bicyclo[2.2.1]hept‐1‐yl) and their homolytic fragmentations were studied computationally using hybrid density functional theory (DFT) at the B3PW91 and B3PW91‐D3 dispersion‐corrected levels. Experimental structures were well replicated; the dispersion correction resulted in shortened M?C bond lengths for the stable complexes, and it was found that Fe(nor)₄ receives a remarkable 45.9 kcal mol^?1 stabilization from the dispersion effects whereas the tetragonalized Co(nor)₄ shows stabilization of 38.3 kcal mol^?1. Ni(nor)₄ was calculated to be highly tetragonalized with long Ni?C bonds, providing a rationale for its current synthetic inaccessibility. Isodesmic exchange evaluation for Fe(nor)₄ confirmed that dispersion force attraction between norbornyl substituents is fundamental to the stability of these species.     

Tetra­butyl­ammonium α‐acetyl‐γ‐butyrolactonate containing a three‐dimensional hydrogen‐bonded network

The title compound, C₁₆H₃₆N⁺·C₆H₇O₃^?, crystallizes with two independent anions and two independent cations in the asymmetric unit. Each anion adopts an s‐trans conformation and forms O?H—C hydrogen bonds to the α‐methyl­ene groups of four neighbouring tetra­butyl­ammonium cations, to create a three‐dimensional hydrogen‐bonded network.     

Bis(2‐amino‐1H‐benzimidazol‐3‐ium) tetrakis(μ‐but‐2‐enoato)‐κ4O:O′;κ3O,O′:O;κ3O:O,O′‐bis[bis(but‐2‐enoato‐κ2O,O′)holmium(III)]

The title ionic compound, (C₇H₈N₃)₂[Ho₂(C₄H₅O₂)₈], is constructed from two almost identical independent centrosymmetric anionic dimers balanced by two independent 2‐amino‐1H‐benzimidazol‐3‐ium (Habim⁺) cations. The asymmetric part of each dimer is made up of one Ho^III cation and four crotonate (crot or but‐2‐enoate) anions, two of them acting in a simple η²‐chelating mode and the remaining two acting in two different μ₂:η² fashions, viz. purely bridging and bridging–chelating. Symmetry‐related Ho^III cations are linked by two Ho—O—Ho and two Ho—O—C—O—Ho bridges which lead to rather short intracationic Ho...Ho distances [3.8418 (3) and 3.8246 (3) Å]. In addition to the obvious Coulombic interactions linking the cations and anions, the isolated [Ho₂(crot)₈]²⁻ and Habim⁺ ions are linked by a number of N—H...O hydrogen bonds, in which all N—H groups of the cation are involved as donors and all (simple chelating) crot O atoms are involved as acceptors. These interactions result in compact two‐dimensional structures parallel to (110), which are linked to each other by weaker π–π contacts between Habim⁺ benzene groups.     

Efficient Fe‐Co‐N‐C Electrocatalyst Towards Oxygen Reduction Derived from a Cationic CoII‐based Metal–Organic Framework Modified by Anion‐Exchange with Potassium Ferricyanide

Fe‐Co‐N‐C electrocatalysts have proven superior to their counterparts (e.g. Fe‐N‐C or Co‐N‐C) for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). Herein, we report on a unique strategy to prepare Fe‐Co‐N‐C?x (x refers to the pyrolysis temperature) electrocatalysts which involves anion‐exchange of [Fe(CN)₆]^3? into a cationic Co^II‐based metal‐organic framework precursor prior to heat treatment. Fe‐Co‐N‐C‐900 exhibits an optimal ORR catalytic performance in an alkaline electrolyte with an onset potential (E_onset: 0.97 V) and half‐wave potential (E_1/2: 0.86 V) comparable to that of commercial Pt/C (E_onset=1.02 V; E_1/2=0.88 V), which outperforms the corresponding Co‐N‐C‐900 sample (E_onset=0.92 V; E_1/2=0.84 V) derived from the same MOF precursor without anion‐exchange modification. This is the first example of Fe‐Co‐N‐C electrocatalysts fabricated from a cationic Co^II‐based MOF precursor that dopes the Fe element via anion‐exchange, and our current work provides a new entrance towards MOF‐derived transition‐metal (e.g. Fe or Co) and nitrogen‐codoped carbon electrocatalysts with excellent ORR activity.     

Structural comparison of three N‐(4‐halogenophenyl)‐N′‐[1‐(2‐pyridyl)ethylidene]hydrazine hydrochlorides

2‐{1‐[(4‐Chloroanilino)methylidene]ethyl}pyridinium chloride methanol solvate, C₁₃H₁₃ClN₃⁺·Cl⁻·CH₃OH, (I), crystallizes as discrete cations and anions, with one molecule of methanol as solvent in the asymmetric unit. The N—C—C—N torsion angle in the cation indicates a cis conformation. The cations are located parallel to the (02) plane and are connected through hydrogen bonds by a methanol solvent molecule and a chloride anion, forming zigzag chains in the direction of the b axis. The crystal structure of 2‐{1‐[(4‐fluoroanilino)methylidene]ethyl}pyridinium chloride, C₁₃H₁₃FN₃⁺·Cl⁻, (II), contains just one anion and one cation in the asymmetric unit but no solvent. In contrast with (I), the N—C—C—N torsion angle in the cation corresponds with a trans conformation. The cations are located parallel to the (100) plane and are connected by hydrogen bonds to the chloride anions, forming zigzag chains in the direction of the b axis. In addition, the crystal packing is stabilized by weak π–π interactions between the pyridinium and benzene rings. The crystal of (II) is a nonmerohedral monoclinic twin which emulates an orthorhombic diffraction pattern. Twinning occurs via a twofold rotation about the c axis and the fractional contribution of the minor twin component refined to 0.324 (3). 2‐{1‐[(4‐Fluoroanilino)methylidene]ethyl}pyridinium chloride methanol disolvate, C₁₃H₁₃FN₃⁺·Cl⁻·2CH₃OH, (III), is a pseudopolymorph of (II). It crystallizes with two anions, two cations and four molecules of methanol in the asymmetric unit. Two symmetry‐equivalent cations are connected by hydrogen bonds to a chloride anion and a methanol solvent molecule, forming a centrosymmetric dimer. A further methanol molecule is hydrogen bonded to each chloride anion. These aggregates are connected by C—H...O contacts to form infinite chains. It is remarkable that the geometric structures of two compounds having two different formula units in their asymmetric units are essentially the same.     

4‐Methoxyanilinium tetrafluoroborate–dibenzo‐18‐crown‐6 (1/1)

In the structure of the complex of dibenzo‐18‐crown‐6 [systematic name: 2,5,8,15,18,21‐hexaoxatricyclo[20.4.0.0^9,14]hexacosa‐1(26),9,11,13,22,24‐hexaene] with 4‐methoxyanilinium tetrafluoroborate, C₇H₁₀NO⁺·BF₄⁻·C₂₀H₂₄O₆, the protonated 4‐methoxyanilinium (MB‐NH₃⁺) cation forms a 1:1 supramolecular rotator–stator complex with the dibenzo‐18‐crown‐6 molecule via N—H...O hydrogen bonds. The MB‐NH₃⁺ group is attached from the convex side of the bowl‐shaped crown, in contrast with similar ammonium cations that nest in the curvature of the bowl. The cations are associated via C—H...π interactions, while the cations and anions are linked by weak C—H...F hydrogen bonds, forming cation–crown–anion chains parallel to [011].     

Gas‐Phase Reactions of Cationic Vanadium‐Phosphorus Oxide Clusters with C2Hx (x=4, 6): A DFT‐Based Analysis of Reactivity Patterns

The reactivities of the adamantane‐like heteronuclear vanadium‐phosphorus oxygen cluster ions [V_xP_4?xO₁₀]^.+ (x=0, 2–4) towards hydrocarbons strongly depend on the V/P ratio of the clusters. Possible mechanisms for the gas‐phase reactions of these heteronuclear cations with ethene and ethane have been elucidated by means of DFT‐based calculations; homolytic C? H bond activation constitutes the initial step, and for all systems the P? O^. unit of the clusters serves as the reactive site. More complex oxidation processes, such as oxygen‐atom transfer to, or oxidative dehydrogenation of the hydrocarbons require the presence of a vanadium atom to provide the electronic prerequisites which are necessary to bring about the 2e^? reduction of the cationic clusters.     

(M)‐ and (P)‐8‐[(1S,2R)‐2‐hydroxy‐1‐methyl‐2‐phenylethyl]‐8‐methyl‐8,9‐dihydro‐7H‐dinaphth[2,1‐c:1′,2′‐e]azepinium bromide solvates

The title compounds are diastereoisomers with antipodean axial chirality. The M isomer crystallizes as a (1/3) acetone solvate, C₃₂H₃₀NO⁺·Br^?·3C₃H₆O, while the P isomer crystallizes as a (1/1) di­chloro­methane solvate, C₃₂H₃₀NO⁺·Br^?·CH₂Cl₂. In each structure, O—H?Br hydrogen bonds link the cations and anions to give ion pairs. The seven‐membered azepinium ring adopts the usual twisted‐boat conformation and its ring strain causes a slight curvature of the plane of each naphthyl ring.     

μ‐{N,N′‐Bis[2‐(dimethyl­amino)ethyl]oxamidato(2–)}‐1κ2O,O′:2κ4N,N′,N′′,N′′′‐bis­(4,4′‐dimethyl‐2,2′‐bipyridine‐1κ2N,N′)dinickel(II) bis­(perchlorate)

In the crystal structure of the title complex, [Ni₂(C₁₀H₂₀N₄O₂)(C₁₂H₁₂N₂)₂](ClO₄)₂ or [Ni(dmaeoxd)Ni(dmbp)₂](ClO₄)₂ {H₂dmaeoxd is N,N′‐bis­[2‐(dimethyl­amino)ethyl]oxamide and dmbp is 4,4′‐dimethyl‐2,2′‐bipyridine}, the deprotonated dmaeoxd²⁻ ligand is in a cis conformation and bridges two Ni^II atoms, one of which is located in a slightly distorted square‐planar environment, while the other is in an irregular octa­hedral environment. The cation is located on a twofold symmetry axis running through both Ni atoms. The dmaeoxd²⁻ ligands inter­act with each other via C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds and π–π inter­actions, which results in an extended chain along the c axis.     

Tris{bis­[hydro­tris(1‐pyrazolyl)­borato‐κ3N2,N2′,N2′′]iron(III)} hexaiso­thio­cyanato­iron(III)

The title compound, [Fe(C₉H₁₀BN₆)₂]₃[Fe(NCS)₆] or [Fe^III(Tp)₂]₃[Fe^III(NCS)₆] [Tp is hydro­tris(1‐pyrazolyl)­borate], crystallizes in space group ; the asymmetric unit comprises one‐half of an [Fe(Tp)₂]⁺ cation, with its Fe atom on a crystallographic inversion centre, and one‐sixth of an [Fe(NCS)₆]³⁻ anion, on a site of symmetry. The anions and cations are stacked into a three‐dimensional supramolecular aggregate via two distinct types of weak C—H⋯π interactions.     

Dispersion Forces,Disproportionation, and Stable High‐Valent Late Transition Metal Alkyls

The transition metal tetra‐ and trinorbornyl bromide complexes, M(nor)₄ (M=Fe, Co, Ni) and Ni(nor)₃Br (nor=1‐bicyclo[2.2.1]hept‐1‐yl) and their homolytic fragmentations were studied computationally using hybrid density functional theory (DFT) at the B3PW91 and B3PW91‐D3 dispersion‐corrected levels. Experimental structures were well replicated; the dispersion correction resulted in shortened M−C bond lengths for the stable complexes, and it was found that Fe(nor)₄ receives a remarkable 45.9 kcal mol⁻¹ stabilization from the dispersion effects whereas the tetragonalized Co(nor)₄ shows stabilization of 38.3 kcal mol⁻¹. Ni(nor)₄ was calculated to be highly tetragonalized with long Ni−C bonds, providing a rationale for its current synthetic inaccessibility. Isodesmic exchange evaluation for Fe(nor)₄ confirmed that dispersion force attraction between norbornyl substituents is fundamental to the stability of these species.     

Hydrogen bonding and π–π stacking in methyl­aminium 4′,7‐dihydroxy­isoflavone‐3′‐sulfonate dihydrate and hexa­aqua­iron(II) bis­(4′,7‐diethoxy­isoflavone‐3′‐sulfonate) tetra­hydrate

In methyl­aminium 4′,7‐dihydroxy­isoflavone‐3′‐sulfonate dihydrate, CH₆N⁺·C₁₅H₉O₇S⁻·2H₂O, 11 hydrogen bonds exist between the methyl­aminium cations, the iso­flavone‐3′‐sulfonate anions and the solvent water mol­ecules. In hexa­aqua­iron(II) bis­(4′,7‐diethoxy­isoflavone‐3′‐sulfonate) tetra­hydrate, [Fe(H₂O)₆](C₁₉H₁₇O₇S)₂·4H₂O, 12 hydrogen bonds exist between the centrosymmetric [Fe(H₂O)₆]²⁺ cation, the isoflavone‐3′‐sulfonate anions and the solvent water mol­ecules. Additional π–π stacking inter­actions generate three‐dimensional supramolecular structures in both compounds.     

Controlled Synthesis of Heterotrimetallic Single‐Chain Magnets from Anisotropic High‐Spin 3 d–4 f Nodes and Paramagnetic Spacers

By using the node‐and‐spacer approach in suitable solvents, four new heterotrimetallic 1D chain‐like compounds (that is, containing 3d–3d′–4f metal ions), {[Ni(L)Ln(NO₃)₂(H₂O)Fe(Tp*)(CN)₃] ? 2 CH₃CN ? CH₃OH}_n (H₂L=N,N′‐bis(3‐methoxysalicylidene)‐1,3‐diaminopropane, Tp*=hydridotris(3,5‐dimethylpyrazol‐1‐yl)borate; Ln=Gd ( 1 ), Dy ( 2 ), Tb ( 3 ), Nd ( 4 )), have been synthesized and structurally characterized. All of these compounds are made up of a neutral cyanide‐ and phenolate‐bridged heterotrimetallic chain, with a {? Fe? C?N? Ni(? O? Ln)? N?C? }_n repeat unit. Within these chains, each [(Tp*)Fe(CN)₃]^? entity binds to the Ni^II ion of the [Ni(L)Ln(NO₃)₂(H₂O)]⁺ motif through two of its three cyanide groups in a cis mode, whereas each [Ni(L)Ln(NO₃)₂(H₂O)]⁺ unit is linked to two [(Tp*)Fe(CN)₃]^? ions through the Ni^II ion in a trans mode. In the [Ni(L)Ln(NO₃)₂(H₂O)]⁺ unit, the Ni^II and Ln^III ions are bridged to one other through two phenolic oxygen atoms of the ligand (L). Compounds 1 – 4 are rare examples of 1D cyanide‐ and phenolate‐bridged 3d–3d′–4f helical chain compounds. As expected, strong ferromagnetic interactions are observed between neighboring Fe^III and Ni^II ions through a cyanide bridge and between neighboring Ni^II and Ln^III (except for Nd^III) ions through two phenolate bridges. Further magnetic studies show that all of these compounds exhibit single‐chain magnetic behavior. Compound 2 exhibits the highest effective energy barrier (58.2 K) for the reversal of magnetization in 3d/4d/5d–4f heterotrimetallic single‐chain magnets.     

Specific Processes and Scrambling in the Dehydrogenation of Ethane and the Degenerate Hydrogen Exchange in the Gas‐Phase Ion Chemistry of the Ni(C,H3,O)+/C2H6 Couple

A mechanistically unprecedented situation characterizes the gas‐phase ion chemistry of Ni(C,H₃,O)⁺ when reacted under thermal, single‐collision conditions with ethane. A dehydrogenation channel leading to Ni(C₃,H₇,O)⁺ is to 90% preceded by a complete loss of positional identity of all nine H‐atoms of the encounter complex (‘scrambling’), whereas ca. 10% of the reaction exhibit a selective C? H bond activation of the alkane. In addition, a degenerate H exchange between ethane and the (C,H₃,O) unit occurs as a side reaction, the mechanistic details of which remain unknown for the time being.     

(Aqua‐2κO)bis(2,2′‐bipyridine‐1κ2N,N′){μ‐N‐[3‐(dimethylamino)propyl]‐N′‐(2‐oxidophenyl)oxamidato(3−)‐1:2κ2O,O′:κ4O′′,N,N′,N′′}copper(II)nickel(II) perchlorate

The title complex, [CuNi(C₁₃H₁₆N₃O₃)(C₁₀H₈N₂)₂(H₂O)]ClO₄, has a cis‐oxamide‐bridged heterobinuclear cation, with a Cu...Ni separation of 5.3297 (6) Å, counterbalanced by a disordered perchlorate anion. The Cu^II and Ni^II cations are located in square‐pyramidal and octahedral coordination environments, respectively. The complex molecules are assembled into a three‐dimensional supramolecular structure through hydrogen bonds and π–π stacking interactions. The influence of the two types of metal cation on the supramolecular structure is discussed.     

2,2′‐Bipyridinium bis(perchlorate)

The title compound, [H₂bipy](ClO₄)₂ or C₁₀H₁₀N₂²⁺·2ClO₄^?, was obtained at the interface between an organic (2,2′‐bi­pyridine in methanol) and an aqueous phase (perchloric acid in water). The compound crystallizes in space group P and comprises discrete diprotonated trans‐bipyridinium cations, [H₂bipy]²⁺, and ClO₄^? anions. The cations and anions are connected through N—H?O and C—H?O hydrogen bonds [distances N?O 2.817 (4) and 2.852 (4) Å, and C?O 3.225 (6)–3.412 (5)Å]. The C—C bond distance between the two rings is 1.452 (5) Å. The bipyridinium cation has a trans conformation and the N—C—C—N torsion angle is 152.0 (3)°.     

Tris(2,2′‐bipyridine)iron(II) bis(1,1,3,3‐tetracyano‐2‐ethoxypropenide) dihydrate: chiral hydrogen‐bonded frameworks interpenetrate in three dimensions

In the title compound, [Fe(C₁₀H₈N₂)₃](C₉H₅N₄O)₂·2H₂O, the chiral cations lie across twofold rotation axes in the space group C2/c. The anions and the water molecules are linked by two independent O—H...N hydrogen bonds to form C₂²(8) chains, and these chains are linked by the cations via C—H...N and C—H...O hydrogen bonds to form two interpenetrating three‐dimensional frameworks, each of which contains only one enantiomeric form of the chiral cation.     

A novel two‐dimensional cobalt(II) complex composed of one‐dimensional twisted pair‐like chains: poly[[tetraaquabis(μ3‐pyridine‐2,5‐dicarboxylato‐κ4N,O2:O5:O5′)dicobalt(II)] dihydrate]

A novel neutral polymer, {[Co₂(C₇H₃NO₄)₂(H₂O)₄]·2H₂O}_n, was hydrothermally synthesized using pyridine‐2,5‐dicarboxylate (2,5‐PDC²⁻) as the organic linker. It features a two‐dimensional layer structure constructed from one‐dimensional {[Co(2,5‐PDC)₂]²⁻}_n chains interlinked by [Co(H₂O)₄]⁺ units. The two Co^II cations occupy special positions, sitting on inversion centres. Each 2,5‐PDC²⁻ anion chelates to one Co^II cation via the pyridine N atom and an O atom of the adjacent carboxylate group, and links to two other Co^II cations in a bridging mode via the O atoms of the other carboxylate group. In this way, the 2,5‐PDC²⁻ ligand connects three neighbouring Co^II centres to form a two‐dimensional network. The two‐dimensional undulating layers are linked by extensive hydrogen bonds to form a three‐dimensional supramolecular structure, with the uncoordinated solvent molecules occupying the interlamellar region.