Salen-iron complexes: Synthesis,characterization and their reactivity with lactide

Schiff-base metal complexes as efficient catalysts are widely used in ring-opening polymerization of cycle esters.The salen Fe complexes were formed with their excellent biocompatibility and less toxicity.A series of salen Fe complexes were designed in this work in order to study the activity and control of polymerization of lactide.The salen Fe complexes' activities changed with the ligands configuration and substituent groups.     

Bis(phosphinic)diamido yttrium amide, alkoxide, and aryloxide complexes: an evaluation of lactide ring-opening polymerization initiator efficiency

The synthesis and characterization of a series of bis(phosphinic)diamido yttrium alkoxide, amide, and aryloxide initiators are reported. The new complexes are characterized using multinuclear nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, elemental analysis, and, in some cases, X-ray crystallography. The alkoxide complexes are all dimeric in both the solid state and in solution, as are the amide complexes substituted with iso-propyl or phenyl groups on the phosphorus atoms. On the other hand, increasing the steric hindrance of the phosphorus substituents (tert-butyl), enables isolation of mononuclear yttrium amide complexes with either 2,2-dimethylpropylene or ethylene diamido ligand backbones. The complex of 2,6-di-tert-butyl-4-methylphenoxide is also mononuclear. All the new complexes are efficient initiators for rac-lactide ring-opening polymerization. The polymerization kinetics are compared and pseudo first order rate constants, k(obs), determined. The polymerization control is also discussed, by monitoring the number-averaged molecular weight, M(n), and polydispersity index, PDI, obtained using gel permeation chromatography (GPC). The alkoxide complexes are the most efficient initiators, showing very high rates and good polymerization control, behavior consistent with rapid rates of initiation. The phenoxide and amide complexes are less efficient as manifest by nonlinear regions in the kinetic plots, lower values for k(obs), and reduced polymerization control. One of the mononuclear yttrium amide complexes shows heteroselectivity in the polymerization of rac-lactide; however, this effect is reduced on changing the initiating group to phenoxide or on changing the ancillary ligand diamido backbone group.     

Stereochemistry of lactide polymerization with chiral catalysts: new opportunities for stereocontrol using polymer exchange mechanisms

The synthesis of chiral aluminum and yttrium alkoxides and their application for lactide polymerization are reported. The complexes (SalBinap)MOR [4, M = Al, R = (i)Pr; 5, M = Y, R = (CH(2))(2)NMe(2)] are synthesized by reacting the ligand (SalBinap)H(2) [2,2'-[(1,1'-binaphthalene)-2,2'-diylbis(nitrilomethylidyne)]bisphenol] with the appropriate metal trisalkoxide. While enantiomerically pure yttrium complex 5 did not effect stereocontrol in the polymerization of either meso- or rac-lactide, homochiral 4 was found to exhibit excellent stereocontrol in a range of lactide polymerizations. Enantiomerically pure 4 polymerizes meso-lactide to syndiotactic poly(lactic acid) (PLA), while rac-4 polymerizes meso- and rac-lactide to heterotactic and isotactic stereoblock PLA, respectively. On the basis of the absolute stereochemistry of ring-opening of meso-lactide using (R)-4, a polymer exchange mechanism is proposed to account for the PLA microstructures resulting from rac-4.     

A series of bis(phosphinic)diamido yttrium complexes as initiators for lactide polymerization

A series of new bis(phosphinic)diamido yttrium complexes have been synthesized and fully characterized. The complexes adopt dimeric structures, both in solution and in the solid state, where one phosphinic group bonds to one yttrium center and the other bonds to two yttrium centers. The complexes have all been tested as initiators for the ring-opening polymerization of lactide; they are all highly active. The rate of polymerization is controlled by the diamine backbone substituent with the rate depending on the backbone flexibility. The order of decreasing rates were 2,2-dimethyl-1,3-propylene > trans-1,2-cyclohexylene > 1,2-ethylene > 1,2-phenylene. The polymerization kinetics showed, in most cases, an initiation period, during which the percentage conversion and the rate of polymerization were much lower than during propagation. This was attributed to relatively slow initiation by the bulky amido group. The initiator structure was probed using (31)P{ (1)H} NMR spectroscopy, which showed that the dimeric structure was maintained throughout the polymerization. The initiators give rise to controlled ring-opening polymerization as shown by the linear relationship between the percentage conversion and the number-average molecular weight.     

Poly(styrene)-supported co-salen complexes as efficient recyclable catalysts for the hydrolytic kinetic resolution of epichlorohydrin

Here we describe an unprecedented synthetic approach to poly(styrene)-supported chiral salen ligands by the free radical polymerization of an unsymmetrical styryl-substituted salen monomer (H2salen = bis(salicylidene)ethylenediamine). The new method allows for the attachment of salen moieties to the polymer main chain in a flexible, pendant fashion, avoiding grafting reactions that often introduce ill-defined species on the polymers. Moreover, the loading of the salen is controlled by the copolymerization of the styryl-substituted salen monomer with styrene in different ratios. The polymeric salen ligands are metallated with cobalt(II) acetate to afford the corresponding supported Co-salen complexes, which are used in the hydrolytic kinetic resolution of racemic epichlorohydrin, exhibiting high reactivity and enantioselectivity. Remarkably, the copolymer-supported Co-salen complexes showed a better catalytic performance (>99 % ee, 54 % conversion, one hour) in comparison to the homopolymeric analogues and the small molecule Co-salen complex. The soluble poly(styrene)-supported catalysts were recovered by precipitation after the catalytic reactions and were recycled three times to afford almost identical enantiomeric excesses as the first run, with slightly reduced reaction rates.     

Metal‐Size Influence in Iso‐Selective Lactide Polymerization

Iso‐selective initiators for the ring‐opening polymerization (ROP) of rac‐lactide are rare outside of Group 13. We describe the first examples of highly iso‐selective lutetium initiators. The phosphasalen lutetium ethoxide complex shows excellent iso‐selectivity, with a P_i value of 0.81–0.84 at 298 K, excellent rates, and high degrees of polymerization control. Conversely, the corresponding La derivative exhibits moderate heteroselectivity (P_s=0.74, 298 K). Thus, the choice of metal center is shown to be crucial in determining the level and mode of stereocontrol. The relative order of rates for the series of complexes is inversely related to metallic covalent radius: that is, La>Y>Lu.     

Stereoselective ring‐opening polymerization of D,L‐lactide,initiated by aluminum isopropoxides bearing tridentate nonchiral schiff‐base ligands

Ring‐opening polymerization of D,L ‐lactide was stereoselectively achieved using newly designed aluminum alkoxide complexes as initiators. These half‐SALEN aluminum complexes bearing tridentate nonchiral Schiff‐base ligands are racemates, which provide chirality in the aluminum centers, efficiently afforded a stereoblock copolymer of D,L ‐LA. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2012     

Poly(styrene)‐Supported Co–Salen Complexes as Efficient Recyclable Catalysts for the Hydrolytic Kinetic Resolution of Epichlorohydrin

Here we describe an unprecedented synthetic approach to poly(styrene)‐supported chiral salen ligands by the free radical polymerization of an unsymmetrical styryl‐substituted salen monomer (H₂salen=bis(salicylidene)ethylenediamine). The new method allows for the attachment of salen moieties to the polymer main chain in a flexible, pendant fashion, avoiding grafting reactions that often introduce ill‐defined species on the polymers. Moreover, the loading of the salen is controlled by the copolymerization of the styryl‐substituted salen monomer with styrene in different ratios. The polymeric salen ligands are metallated with cobalt(II ) acetate to afford the corresponding supported Co–salen complexes, which are used in the hydrolytic kinetic resolution of racemic epichlorohydrin, exhibiting high reactivity and enantioselectivity. Remarkably, the copolymer‐supported Co–salen complexes showed a better catalytic performance (>99 % ee, 54 % conversion, one hour) in comparison to the homopolymeric analogues and the small molecule Co–salen complex. The soluble poly(styrene)‐supported catalysts were recovered by precipitation after the catalytic reactions and were recycled three times to afford almost identical enantiomeric excesses as the first run, with slightly reduced reaction rates.     

Synthesis of Isotactic–Heterotactic Stereoblock (Hard–Soft) Poly(lactide) with Tacticity Control through Immortal Coordination Polymerization

A one‐pot method for the preparation of a new family of PLA materials is reported that combines heterotactic (soft) and isotactic stereoblocks (hard). The ring‐opening polymerization of rac‐lactide with a salan–rare‐earth‐metal–alkyl complex in the presence of excess triethanolamine was performed in an immortal mode to give three‐armed heterotactic poly(lactide) (soft) with excellent end‐hydroxy fidelity. The in situ addition of a salen–aluminum–alkyl precursor to the above polymerization system under any monomer‐conversion conditions activated the “dormant” hydroxy‐ended PLA chains to propagate through the incorporation of the remaining rac‐lactide monomer, but with isospecific selectivity (hard). The resultant PLA had a three‐armed architecture with controlled molecular weight and extremely narrow molecular‐weight distribution (PDI<1.08). More strikingly, each side‐arm simultaneously possessed highly heterotactic (soft) and highly isotactic (hard) segments and the ratio of these two stereoregular sequences could be swiftly adjusted by tuning the addition time of the salen–aluminum–alkyl precursor to the polymerization system. Therefore, star‐shaped hard–soft stereoblock poly(lactide)s with various P_m values and crystallinity were achieved in a single reactor for the first time. This strategy should be applicable to the synthesis of a series of new types of stereoblock polyesters by using an immortal‐polymerization process and a proper choice of specific, selective metal‐based catalysts.     

Mechanistic Insight into the Stereochemical Control of Lactide Polymerization by Salan–Aluminum Catalysts

Alkyl aluminum complexes of chiral salan ligands assembled around the 2,2′‐bipyrrolidine core form as single diastereomers that have identical configurations of the N donors. Active catalysts for the polymerization of lactide were formed upon the addition of benzyl alcohol. Polymeryl exchange between enantiomorphous aluminum species had a dramatic effect on the tacticity of the poly(lactic acid) (PLA) in the polymerization of racemic lactide (rac‐LA): The enantiomerically pure catalyst of the nonsubstituted salan ligand led to isotactic PLA, and the racemic catalyst exhibited lower stereocontrol. The enantiomerically pure catalyst of the chloro‐substituted salan ligand led to PLA with a slight tendency toward heterotacticity, whereas the racemic catalyst led to PLA of almost perfect heterotacticity following an insertion/auto‐inhibition/exchange mechanism.     

Aluminum salen and salan complexes in the ring‐opening polymerization of cyclic esters: Controlled immortal and copolymerization of rac‐β‐butyrolactone and rac‐lactide

Aluminum‐based salen and salan complexes mediate the ring‐opening polymerization (ROP) of rac‐β‐butyrolactone (β‐BL), rac‐lactide, and ε‐caprolactone. Al‐salen and Al‐salan complexes exhibit excellent control over the ROP of rac‐β‐butyrolactone, yielding atactic poly(3‐hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) with narrow PDIs of <1.15 for Al‐salen and <1.05 for Al‐salan. Kinetic studies reveal pseudo‐first‐order polymerization kinetics and a linear relationship between molecular weight and percent conversion. These complexes also mediate the immortal ROP of rac‐β‐BL and rac‐lactide, through the addition of excess benzyl alcohol of up to 50 mol eq., with excellent control observed. A novel methyl/adamantyl‐substituted Al‐salen system further improves control over the ROP of rac‐lactide and rac‐β‐BL, yielding atactic PHB and highly isotactic poly(lactic acid) (P_m = 0.88). Control over the copolymerization of rac‐lactide and rac‐β‐BL was also achieved, yielding poly(lactic acid)‐co‐poly(3‐hydroxybutyrate) with narrow PDIs of <1.10. ¹H NMR spectra of the copolymers indicate a strong bias for the insertion of rac‐lactide over rac‐β‐BL. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2013     

Lactide polymerization by well-defined calcium coordination complexes: comparisons with related magnesium and zinc chemistry

Amide and alkoxide coordination complexes of calcium supported by beta-diiminato and bulky trispyrazolylborate complexes are reported together with their activity in lactide ring-opening polymerization; some are amongst the most active systems discovered to date.     

Zinc N-heterocyclic carbene complexes and their polymerization of d,l-lactide

A series of zinc complexes of monodentate N-heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs) and a new sterically bulky bidentate pyridyl-NHC ligand have been synthesized and characterized by spectroscopic and X-ray crystallographic methods. Dinuclear alkoxide complexes of monodentate NHC complexes with 2,4,6-trimethylphenyl substituents appear to form monomeric species in solution and show good control and activity for lactide polymerization, including mild stereoelectivity as indicated by formation of heterotactic-enriched polylactide in d,l-lactide polymerizations. Kinetics studies revealed an overall second order rate law, first order in [LA] and [catalyst]. Efforts to obtain Zn–alkoxide complexes of a more sterically hindered NHC with 2,6-diisopropylphenyl groups were unsuccessful due to Zn–NHC bond scission. Ligand dissociation was also observed in attempts to prepare Zn–alkoxide complexes of the bidentate pyridyl-NHC system, despite its chelating nature.     

A highly active zinc catalyst for the controlled polymerization of lactide

We report the preparation, structural characterization, and detailed lactide polymerization behavior of a new Zn(II) alkoxide complex, (L(1)ZnOEt)(2) (L(1) = 2,4-di-tert-butyl-6-{[(2'-dimethylaminoethyl)methylamino]methyl}phenolate). While an X-ray crystal structure revealed the complex to be dimeric in the solid state, nuclear magnetic resonance and mass spectrometric analyses showed that the monomeric form L(1)ZnOEt predominates in solution. The polymerization of lactide using this complex proceeded with good molecular weight control and gave relatively narrow molecular weight distribution polylactide, even at catalyst loadings of <0.1% that yielded M(n) as high as 130 kg mol(-)(1). The effect of impurities on the molecular weight of the product polymers was accounted for using a simple model. Detailed kinetic studies of the polymerization reaction enabled integral and nonintegral orders in L(1)ZnOEt to be distinguished and the empirical rate law to be elucidated, -d[LA]/dt = k(p)[L(1)ZnOEt][LA]. These studies also showed that L(1)ZnOEt polymerizes lactide at a rate faster than any other Zn-containing system reported previously. This work provides important mechanistic information pertaining to the polymerization of lactide and other cyclic esters by discrete metal alkoxide complexes.     

Redox control of a ring-opening polymerization catalyst

The activity of an yttrium alkoxide complex supported by a ferrocene-based ligand was controlled using redox reagents during the ring-opening polymerization of L-lactide. The oxidized complex was characterized by X-ray crystallography and (1)H NMR, XANES, and M?ssbauer spectroscopy. Switching in situ between the oxidized and reduced yttrium complexes resulted in a change in the rate of polymerization of L-lactide. Synthesized polymers were analyzed by gel permeation chromatography. Polymerization of trimethylene carbonate was also performed with the reduced and oxidized forms of an indium alkoxide complex. The indium system showed the opposite behavior to that of yttrium, revealing a metal-based dependency on the rate of polymerization.     

Ring-opening polymerization of 3,6-dimethyl-2,5-morpholinedione with discrete amino-alkoxy-bis(phenolate) yttrium initiators: mechanistic insights

Alkoxy-amino-bis(phenolate) yttrium amide and alkoxide complexes promote the ring-opening polymerization of (3S,6S)-dimethyl-2,5-morpholinedione at 60-100 degrees C via a coordination-insertion polymerization mechanism.     

Isotactic rac‐Lactide Polymerization with Copper Complexes: The Influence of Complex Nuclearity

Diiminopyrrolide copper alkoxide complexes, LCuOR (OR¹=N,N‐dimethylamino ethoxide, OR²=2‐pyridyl methoxide), are active for the polymerization of rac‐lactide at ambient temperature in benzene to yield polymers with M_w/M_n=1.0–1.2. X‐ray diffraction studies showed bridged dinuclear complexes in the solid state for both complexes. While LCuOR¹ provided only atactic polylactide, LCuOR² produced partially isotactic polylactide (P_m=0.7). The difference in stereocontrol is attributed to a dinuclear active species for LCuOR² in contrast to a mononuclear species for LCuOR¹.     

Heteroscorpionate rare-earth initiators for the controlled ring-opening polymerization of cyclic esters

A series of neutral rare-earth metal amides containing different achiral and chiral heteroscorpionate ligands was synthesized and characterized and these compounds were employed in the polymerization of cyclic esters. Thus, treatment of [Ln{N(SiHMe(2))(2)}(3)(thf)(2)] (Ln = Nd, Sm) with acetamide or thioacetamide heteroscorpionate ligands for 2 h at 0 °C afforded the α-agostic silylamido dimeric rare-earth compounds [Ln{N(SiHMe(2))(2)}(NNE)](2) (Ln = Nd and Sm; NNE = heteroscorpionate ligands, E = O, S) (1-8), some as enantiopure complexes. Complexes 1-8 contain dianionic heteroscorpionate pseudoallyl ligands resulting from C-H activation of the bridging methine group of the bis(pyrazol-1-yl)methane moiety and subsequent coordination to the metal center. However, when the reaction was carried out for 1 h at lower temperature new bis(silylamido) dimeric lanthanide compounds [Ln{N(SiHMe(2))(2)}(2)(NNE)](2) (Ln = Nd and Sm; E = O) (9 and 10) were obtained. The structures of the complexes were determined by spectroscopic methods and the X-ray crystal structures of 1, and 4 were also established. Neodymium complexes are active initiators for the ring-opening polymerization (ROP) of lactide (LA) and lactones, giving rise to medium-high molar mass polymers under mild conditions and with narrow polydispersities. These complexes were well suited for achieving well-controlled polymerization through an insertion-coordination mechanism. Achiral and racemic complexes did not affect stereocontrol in the polymerizarion of rac-LA but the enantiomerically pure complex 1 was found to exhibit a homosteric preference for one of the two enantiomers of rac-LA at low conversions.     

Polyhedral oligometallasilsesquioxanes as models for silica-supported catalysts

Incompletely-condensed silsesquioxanes offer excellent potential as ligands in homogeneous models for silica-supported catalysts. This paper focuses on the chemistry of Cr and V-containing silsesquioxanes, which are proposed as models for silica-supported chromates and vanadates. It has been shown that the reactivities of these transition-metal-containing silsesquioxanes can be very different than that observed for stoichiometrically similar alkoxide or siloxide complexes. In particular, two new catalysts for the polymerization of olefins have been prepared by reacting structurally well-defined Cr and V-containing Si/O frameworks with trialkylaluminum reagents. Mechanistic studies on the vanadium system implicate high-valent V(V) complexes as the active catalytic species.     

Achiral tetrahydrosalen ligands for the synthesis of C(2)-symmetric titanium complexes: a structure and diastereoselectivity study

Achiral tetrahydrosalen ligands have been employed in the synthesis of chiral C(2)-symmetric titanium complexes. When combined with tetrahydrosalen ligands 2a and 2b, titanium tetraisopropoxide liberated 2 equiv of isopropyl alcohol and generated the (tetrahydrosalen)Ti(O-i-Pr)(2) complexes 3a and 3b. These complexes were shown to be C(2)-symmetric by (1)H and (13)C[(1)H] NMR spectrometry and X-ray crystallography. X-ray structures of 3a and 3b indicate that the bonding of the tetrahydrosalen ligand to titanium is different than the bonding of salen ligands to titanium. Whereas salen ligands usually bind to titanium in a planar arrangement, the tetrahydrosalen is bonded with the phenoxide oxygens mutually trans. When bound in this fashion, the nitrogens of the tetrahydrosalen ligand and the titanium become stereogenic centers. The use of titanium complexes of high enantiopurity in the generation of tetrahydrosalen titanium adducts resulted in a maximum diastereoselectivity of 2:1. The diastereoselectivity obtained using chiral titanium alkoxide complexes was greater than the diastereoselectivity observed when a tetrahydrosalen ligand derived from (S,S)-trans-diaminocyclohexane was employed.