An experimental study of various arenetricarbonylchromium complexes

For a series of arenetricarbonylchromium complexes ZCr(CO)₃, analysis of the electric dipole moments in benzene and carbonyl stretching frequencies in cyclohexane suggest the following: for unsubstituted ZCr(CO)₃, with Z = diphenyl, fluorene and cis-stilbene, the π-basicity to be considered is that of the ring directly united to the tricarbonylchromium group, and not that of the arene as a whole. In general, the substituent effect in p-substituted diphenyltricarbonylchromium complexes (Z = 4-methyl-, 4-amino- and 4,4′-dimethyldiphenyl), in which the tricarbonylchromium group is bonded to the substituted phenyl ring, is markedly weaker than that in the corresponding benzenetricarbonylchromium complexes. In 4-fluorodiphenyltricarbonylchromium, the tricarbonylchromium group is attached to the unsubstituted phenyl ring. 4-Aminodiphenyltricarbonylchromium exists in two distinct forms: one with the nitrogen lone pair away from, and the other close to, the metal atom. Diphenylmethanetricarbonylchromium (and its 4,4′-diamino derivative), indanetricarbonyl- and 4,4′-difluorodiphenyltricarbonylchromium have also been examined.