Cationic Silica‐Supported N‐Heterocyclic Carbene Tungsten Oxo Alkylidene Sites: Highly Active and Stable Catalysts for Olefin Metathesis

Designing supported alkene metathesis catalysts with high activity and stability is still a challenge, despite significant advances in the last years. Described herein is the combination of strong σ‐donating N‐heterocyclic carbene ligands with weak σ‐donating surface silanolates and cationic tungsten sites leading to highly active and stable alkene metathesis catalysts. These well‐defined silica‐supported catalysts, [(≡SiO)W(=O)(=CHCMe₂Ph)(IMes)(OTf)] and [(≡SiO)W(=O)(=CHCMe₂Ph)(IMes)⁺][B(Ar^F)₄^?] [IMes=1,3‐bis(2,4,6‐trimethylphenyl)‐imidazol‐2‐ylidene, B(Ar^F)₄=B(3,5‐(CF₃)₂C₆H₃)₄] catalyze alkene metathesis, and the cationic species display unprecedented activity for a broad range of substrates, especially for terminal olefins with turnover numbers above 1.2 million for propene.