N-(Pyridin-2-yl)picolinamide tetranickel clusters: Synthesis,structure and ethylene oligomerization

A series of N-(pyridin-2-yl)picolinamide derivatives was synthesized and characterized. Tetranickel complexes were obtained by stoichiometric reaction of NiBr₂ and corresponding ligands, and characterized by elemental and spectroscopic analysis. Moreover, the coordination pattern of complex 3a was confirmed by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. In the structure, two ligands linked two nickel atoms to form a unit, and two units were bridged via μ₃-OMe and μ₂-Br to form a tetranickel cluster. These Ni(II) complexes were investigated in ethylene oligomerization and found to exhibit remarkable catalytic activities upon activation with MAO. Reaction conditions as well as ligand environment significantly affected the catalytic performance of the nickel complexes; the highest activity could be achieved to be 2.7 × 10⁶ g mol⁻¹ Ni h⁻¹.     

Synthesis, characterization and ethylene oligomerization studies of nickel complexes bearing 2-imino-1,10-phenanthrolines

A series of nickel (II) complexes ligated by 2-imino-1,10-phenanthrolines were synthesized and characterized by elemental and spectroscopic analysis as well as by single-crystal X-ray crystallography. X-ray crystallographic analysis reveals complexes 3, 5, 7 and 11 as the five-coordinated distorted trigonal-bipyramidal geometry. Upon activation with Et₂AlCl, these complexes exhibited considerably high activity for ethylene oligomerization (up to 3.76 × 10⁷ g mol⁻¹(Ni) h⁻¹ for 12 with 10 equiv. of PPh₃). The ligand environment and reaction conditions significantly affect the catalytic activity of their nickel complexes.     

Iron(II) and cobalt(II) complexes bearing N-((pyridin-2-yl)methylene)-quinolin-8-amine derivatives: Synthesis and application to ethylene oligomerization

A series of tridentate NˆNˆN iron(II) and cobalt(II) complexes containing N-((pyridin-2-yl)methylene)-quinolin-8-amine derivatives were synthesized and characterized by elemental and spectroscopic analyses. The molecular structure of 1a was confirmed by X-ray diffraction analyses. On treatment with modified methylaluminoxane, these metal complexes exhibited good catalytic activities up to 2.8 × 10⁶ g mol⁻¹(Fe) h⁻¹ for ethylene oligomerization, and butenes were the major products with nice selectivity for 1-C₄. The steric and electronic effects on catalytic activities of metal complexes were carefully investigated as well as the influence of various reaction parameters. In the catalytic system, Fe(II) complexes performed better catalytic activities than their Co(II) analogues. With ligands having bulky substituents, the better catalytic activity was observed in catalytic system of Fe(II) complex, however, the lower catalytic activity was obtained in catalytic system of Co(II) complexes.     

Bridged bis-pyridinylimino dinickel(II) complexes: Syntheses, characterization, ethylene oligomerization and polymerization

A series of bridged bis(pyridinylimino) ligands were efficiently synthesized through the condensation reaction of 4,4′-methylene-bis(2,6-disubstituted aniline) with 2-pyridinecarboxaldehyde or 2-benzoylpyridine. They reacted with (DME)NiBr₂ to form dinuclear Ni(II) complexes. All resultant compounds were characterized by elemental analysis, IR spectra as well as the single-crystal X-ray diffraction to confirm the structures of ligands and complexes. Activated with methylaluminoxane (MAO), these nickel complexes showed considerably good activities for ethylene oligomerization and polymerization. Their catalytic activities and the properties of PEs obtained were depended on the arched environment of ligand and reaction conditions.     

Nickel complexes bearing 2-(1H-benzimidazol-2-yl)-phenoxy ligands: Synthesis, characterization and ethylene oligomerization

A series of 2-(1H-benzimidazol-2-yl)-phenols and their nickel complexes have been synthesized and characterized by elemental and spectroscopic analysis. The molecular structures of ligand L4 and complex C5 were confirmed by X-ray diffraction analysis. X-ray crystallographic analysis revealed that complex C5 has a six-coordinated distorted octahedral geometry. Upon activation with Et₂AlCl, these nickel(II) complexes showed good activity for ethylene oligomerization. When PPh₃ was added as an auxiliary ligand to the catalytic system, an increased activity as high as 1.60 × 10⁷ g mol⁻¹ (Ni) h⁻¹ was observed. The ligand environment and reaction conditions remarkably affected the catalytic behavior of these nickel complexes.     

Nickel (II) complexes bearing 2-ethylcarboxylate-6-iminopyridyl ligands: synthesis, structures and their catalytic behavior for ethylene oligomerization and polymerization

A series of nickel (II) complexes (L)NiCl₂ (7-9) and (L)NiBr₂ (10-12) were prepared by the reactions of the corresponding 2-carboxylate-6-iminopyridine ligands 1-6 with NiCl₂ · 6H₂O or (DME)NiBr₂ (DME = 1,2-dimethoxyethane), respectively. All the complexes were characterized by IR spectroscopy and elemental analysis. Solid-state structures of 7, 8, 10, 11 and 12 were determined by X-ray diffraction. In the cases of 7, 8 and 10, the ligands chelate with the nickel centers in tridentate fashion in which the carbonyl oxygen atoms coordinate with the metal centers, while the carbonyl oxygen atoms are free from coordinating with the nickel centers in 11 and 12. Upon activation with methylaluminoxane (MAO), these complexes are active for ethylene oligomerization (up to 7.97 × 10⁵ g mol⁻¹ (Ni) h⁻¹ for 11 with 2 equivalents of PPh₃ as auxiliary ligand) and/or polymerization (1.37 × 10⁴ g mol⁻¹ (Ni) h⁻¹ for 9). The ethylene oligomerization activities of 7-12 were significantly improved in the presence of PPh₃ as auxiliary ligands. The effects of the coordination environment and reaction conditions on the ethylene catalytic behaviors have been discussed.     

Nickel(II) complexes bearing phosphinooxazoline ligands: Synthesis, structures and their ethylene oligomerization behaviors

A series of Ni(II) complexes 4a-f ligated by the unsymmetrical phosphino-oxazolines (PHOX) were synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis and IR spectroscopy, and the structures of complexes 4c-4e were confirmed by the X-ray crystallographic analysis. All derivatives showed distorted tetrahedron geometry by the nickel center and coordinative atoms. Upon activation with methylaluminoxane (MAO) or Et₂AlCl, these complexes exhibited considerable to high activity of ethylene oligomerization. The ligands environments and reaction conditions significantly affect their catalytic activities, while the highest oligomerization activity (up to 1.18 × 10⁶ g · mol⁻¹(Ni) · h⁻¹) was observed for 4d at 20 atm of ethylene. Incorporation of 2-4 equivalents of PPh₃ as auxiliary ligands in the 4a-f/MAO catalytic systems led to higher activity and longer catalytic lifetime.     

Mixed-ligand complexes with trans-1-(2-pyridyl)-2-(4-pyridyl)ethylene terminal and different aromatic polycarboxyl linkers: Synergistic modulation of metallosupramolecular architectures via coordinative and secondary interactions

A series of Co^II, Ni^II, and Cu^II complexes with trans-1-(2-pyridyl)-2-(4-pyridyl)ethylene (bpe) and various polycarboxyl co-ligands have been prepared under general condition and characterized by IR, elemental analysis, and TG-DTA techniques. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction indicates that these complexes display multifarious binuclear, 1-D, and 2-D coordination motifs in virtue of the bridging polycarboxyl building blocks, in which the bpe ligand uniformly adopts the unidentate coordination by using its 4-pyridyl group. Remarkably, higher-dimensional extended networks are further formed with the aid of additional secondary interactions based on bpe (such as H-bonding and π–π stacking). These results demonstrate that bpe is a reliable bifunctional tecton to construct diverse supramolecular architectures via synergistic effect of multiple intermolecular interactions.     

Nickel(II) complexes chelated by 2-quinoxalinyl-6-iminopyridines: Synthesis, crystal structures and ethylene oligomerization

A series of nickel(II) complexes ligated by tridentate ligands of 2-quinoxalinyl-6-iminopyridines was synthesized and characterized by elemental and spectroscopic analysis as well X-ray diffraction analysis. X-ray crystallographic analysis revealed the nickel complexes as five-coordinated distorted trigonal bipyramidal geometry. In the presence of Et₂AlCl, these complexes displayed high catalytic activity for ethylene oligomerization and the dimmers were produced as main products. The nickel dibromide complexes exhibited relative higher activity than their dichloride analogues. Both elevation of the ethylene pressure and addition of auxiliary ligand have catalytic enhancement effects on all the complexes.     

Dimolybdenum complexes containing anions of N,N′-bis(pyrimidine-2-yl)formamidine and N-(2-pyrimidinyl)formamide

The reactions of Mo₂(O₂CCH₃)₄ with different equivalents of N,N′-bis(pyrimidine-2-yl)formamidine (HL1) and N-(2-pyrimidinyl)formamide (HL2) afforded dimolybdenum complexes of the types Mo₂(O₂CCH₃)(L1)₂(L2) (1) trans-Mo₂(L1)₂(L2)₂ (2) cis-Mo₂(L1)₂(L2)₂ (3) and Mo₂(L2)₄ (4). Their UV–Vis and NMR spectra have been recorded and their structures determined by X-ray crystallography. Complexes 2 and 3 establish the first pair of trans and cis forms of dimolybdenum complexes containing formamidinate ligands. The L1 ligands in 1–3 are bridged to the metal centers through two central amine nitrogen atoms, while the L2 ligands in 1–4 are bridged to the metal centers via one pyrimidyl nitrogen atom and the amine nitrogen atom. The Mo–Mo distances of complexes 1 [2.0951(17) Å], 2 [2.103(1) Å] and 3 [2.1017(3) Å], which contain both Mo?N and Mo?O axial interactions, are slightly longer than those of complex 4 [2.0826(12)–2.0866(10) Å] which has only Mo?O interactions.     

Chromium(III) complexes ligated by 2-(1-isopropyl-2-benzimidazolyl)-6-(1-(arylimino)ethyl)pyridines: Synthesis, characterization and their ethylene oligomerization and polymerization

A series of chromium(III) complexes bearing 2-(1-isopropyl-2-benzimidazolyl)-6-(1-(arylimino)ethyl)pyridines were synthesized and characterized by IR spectroscopic and elemental analysis. The X-ray crystallographic analysis revealed a distorted octahedral geometry of the chromium complexes. When activated by Et₂AlCl, MAO or MMAO, these chromium complexes exhibited catalytic activities for ethylene oligomerization and polymerization; while the good to high activities (up to 3.95 × 10⁶ g mol⁻¹ (Cr) h⁻¹) were observed in the catalytic systems with MMAO. Therefore, various reaction parameters of the catalytic system with MMAO were investigated in detail. The steric and electronic effects of ligands affected the catalytic activities and the distribution of the products predominantly. Interestingly, sometimes their distributions of oligomers did not resemble the rules of Schulz-Flory or Poisson due to the hexenes produced in low yield.     

Syntheses and structures of iron carbonyl complexes derived from N-(5-methyl-2-thienylmethylidene)-2-thiolethylamine and N-(6-methyl-2-pyridylmethylidene)-2-thiolethylamine

The reaction of N-(5-methyl-2-thienylmethylidene)-2-thiolethylamine (1) with Fe₂(CO)₉ in refluxing acetonitrile yielded di-(μ₃-thia)nonacarbonyltriiron (2), μ-[N-(5-methyl-2-thienylmethyl)-η¹:η¹(N);η¹:η¹(S)-2-thiolatoethylamido]hexacarbonyldiiron (3), and N-(5-methyl-2-thienylmethylidene)amine (4). If the reaction was carried out at 45 °C, di-μ-[N-(5-methyl-2-thienylmethylidene)-η¹(N);η¹(S)-2-thiolethylamino]-μ-carbonyl-tetracarbonyldiiron (5) and trace amount of 4 were obtained. Stirring 5 in refluxing acetonitrile led to the thermal decomposition of 5, and ligand 1 was recovered quantitatively. However, in the presence of excess amount of Fe₂(CO)₉ in refluxing acetonitrile, complex 5 was converted into 2-4. On the other hand, the reaction of N-(6-methyl-2-pyridylmethylidene)-2-thiolethylamine (6) with Fe₂(CO)₉ in refluxing acetonitrile produced 2, μ-[N-(6-methyl-2-pyridylmethyl)-η¹ (N_py);η¹:η¹(N); η¹:η¹(S)-2-thiolatoethylamido]pentacarbonyldiiron (7), and μ-[N-(6-methyl-2-pyridylmethylidene)-η²(C,N);η¹:η¹(S)-2- thiolethylamino]hexacarbonyldiiron (8). Reactions of both complex 7 and 8 with NOBF₄ gave μ-[(6-methyl-2-pyridylmethyl)-η¹(N_py);η¹:η¹(N);η¹:η¹(S)-2-thiolatoethylamido](acetonitrile)tricarbonylnitrosyldiiron (9). These reaction products were well characterized spectrally. The molecular structures of complexes 3, 7-9 have been determined by means of X-ray diffraction. Intramolecular 1,5-hydrogen shift from the thiol to the methine carbon was observed in complexes 3, 7, and 9.     

Cobalt and nickel complexes bearing 2,6-bis (imino) phenoxy ligands: syntheses, structures and oligomerization studies

A series of new cobalt and nickel complexes LMX₂ (M=Co, X=Cl; M=Ni, X=Br) bearing 2, 6-bis(imino)phenoxy ligands were synthesized. The solid-state structures of 1 and 4 have been determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction study. Treatment of the complexes LMX₂ with methylaluminoxane (MAO) leads to active catalysts for oligomerization of ethylene with catalytic activities in the range of 1.2×10⁵–2.1×10⁵ g mol⁻¹ h⁻¹ atm⁻¹ for Ni complexes, and 10³ g mol⁻¹ h⁻¹ atm⁻¹ for Co complexes. The oligomers were olefins from C₄ to C₁₆.     

2-(Benzimidazol-2-yl)-1,10-phenanthrolyl metal (Fe and Co) complexes and their catalytic behaviors toward ethylene oligomerization

The N^∧N^∧N-tridentate metal complexes, LMCl₂ (M = Fe or Co; L represents a ligand of 2-(benzimidazol-2-yl)-1,10-phenanthrolines), were synthesized and fully characterized with spectroscopic and elemental analysis. The single-crystal X-ray crystallographic analyses revealed complex 1a with a distorted octahedron geometry due to incorporating one methanol molecule, and complexes 5a and 9b with a distorted trigonal-bipyramidal geometry. Upon activation with modified methylaluminoxane (MMAO), these complexes showed good to high catalytic activities toward ethylene oligomerization. The detailed investigations were carried out to disclose the influences of various reaction conditions and nature of ligands on their performing activities of metal complexes.     

Copper(I) complexes of N-(aryl)pyridine-2-aldimines: Spectral, electrochemical and catalytic properties

The reactions of N-(aryl)pyridine-2-aldimines (L-R; R = OCH₃, CH₃, H, Cl and NO₂), derived from pyridine-2-aldehyde and para-substituted anilines, with CuI in methanol under ambient conditions afford a series of brown complexes of the type [{Cu(L-R)I}₂]. The structure of the [{Cu(L-OCH₃)I}₂] complex has been determined by X-ray crystallography. In these dimeric complexes the two copper centers are linked through an iodo-bridge, and the L-R ligands are coordinated to the metal center through the pyridine-nitrogen and imine-nitrogen. All the complexes show characteristic ¹H NMR signals and intense MLCT transitions in the visible region. These complexes also show an emission near 465 nm, whilst they are excited at 340 nm, with relatively poor quantum yields (φ ∼0.002 at 298 K). Cyclic voltammetry on all the complexes shows two successive Cu(I)-Cu(II) oxidations on the positive side of SCE, and a reduction of the coordinated imine ligand on the negative side. These copper(I) complexes are found to efficiently catalyze Suzuki type C-C coupling reactions.     

Nickel(II) and zinc(II) complexes with N-(5,6-dihydro-4H-1,3-thiazin-2-yl)-2-aminobenzimidazole (BzTz): Synthesis,spectral and structural characterization

The reaction of nickel and zinc chlorides and nitrates with the ligand N-(5,6-dihydro-4H-1,3-thiazin-2-yl)-2-aminobenzimidazole (BzTz) leads to the formation of the new complexes: [NiCl₂(BzTz)₂] (1), [Ni(NO₃)(BzTz)₂(H₂O)₃](NO₃) (2), [ZnCl₂(BzTz)₂] (3) and [Zn(NO₃)₂(BzTz)₂] (4). They have been characterized by spectroscopic methods (electronic, infrared and NMR) and magnetic susceptibility measurements. Additionally, the crystal structures of the complexes 1 and 3 have been determined by X-ray single-crystal diffraction. The ligand exhibits the N-benzimidazole coordination mode on interacting with the metal centers. The X-ray structure of the complexes 1 and 3 reveals a distorted tetrahedral coordination geometry around the metal center, with the metallic atoms coordinated to two chlorine atoms and two benzimidazole nitrogen atoms. These two complexes are isostructural, crystallizing in the monoclinic system and Cc space group. In complex 2 the geometry around the nickel atom could be described as a distorted octahedron whereas in case of complex 4 the zinc atom is in a distorted tetrahedral environment.     

Thermal studies on cobalt(II), nickel(II) and copper(II) ternary complexes of N-(2-acetamido) iminodiacetic acid and imidazoles

The thermal decomposition of Co(II), Ni(II) and Cu(II) complexes has been studied using thermogravimetry (TG) and differential TG (DTG). The complexes have been characterized by IR spectroscopy. The results reveal that the decomposition of these complexes is accompanied by the formation of metal acetate as an intermediate fragments. On the basis of the applicability of a non-isothermal kinetic equations, it was demonstrated that the stability of the complexes follows the order Co(II)>Cu(II)>Ni(II). These stably correspond to the strength of chelation between the metal ions and the primary and secondary ligands. A possible mechanism of the thermal decomposition of the complexes is suggested.     

Triangular Ni(II) complexes from the use of 2-pyridyl oximes

The reactions of representative 2-pyridyl oximes with Ni^II salts in the presence of a base have been investigated. The synthetic study has led to the new triangular complexes [Νi₃(ppko)₆]·2H₂O·0.5EtOH·MeOH (1·2H₂O·0.5EtOH·MeOH), [Νi₃(mpko)₃(HCO₂)₂(mpkoH)₂](ClO₄) (2) and [Νi₃(ppko)₃(HCO₂)₂(ppkoH)₂](ClO₄) (3), where ppko⁻ is the anion of phenyl(2-pyridyl)ketone oxime and mpko⁻ is the anion of methyl(2-pyridyl)ketone oxime. The structures of compounds 1 and 2 have been determined by single crystal X-ray diffraction. The ppko⁻ ligand in 1 adopts four different coordination modes including the unique N_pyridylO_oximate chelating one which gives rise to a 6-membered chelating ring, while the neutral and the deprotonated oxime ligands in 2 adopt three different coordination modes. The magnetic properties of 1 and 2 have been studied by variable-temperature dc magnetic susceptibility techniques which indicate antiferromagnetic interactions.