Reactions of conjugated dienes with cobalt carbonyls under hydroformylation conditions. a high pressure i.r. spectroscopic study

Summary The chemistry of cobalt carbonyls in the presence of dienes and high pressure of synthesis gas was studied by online i.r. spectroscopy. Dicobalt octacarbonyl reacts with butadiene under 95 bar CO/H₂ and 80°C to give [³-C₄H₇Co(CO)₃] (1) and [⁴-C₄H₆)₂Co₂(CO)₄] (2). Hydrogenation or hydroformylation are observed only with [HCo(CO)₄] as the starting catalyst, and only at the beginning of the reaction. The results are explained by formation of an alkenyl complex, [-C₄H₇Co(CO)₄], which either reacts with [HCo(CO)₄] to give butene and [Co₂(CO)₈], or loses CO to give (1), depending on the [HCo(CO)₄] concentration. The butene is hydroformylated. At temperatures >100°C (1) is transformed into a CO-free species, which catalyzes the oligomerisation of butadiene. Addition of tributylphosphine (L) leads to the formation of [³-C₄H₇Co(CO)₂L] (5) and [Co₂(CO)₆L₂] (6). In (5) the -allyl moiety is more labile than in (1) and a slow hydrogenation and hydroformylation of the butadiene is observed. In methanol solution the reaction of the cobalt carbonyls to give (1) is incomplete and the remaining H⁺ and [Co(CO)₄]^– catalyze the hydroformylation of butadiene. Isoprene is less reactive than butadiene but otherwise behaves similarly.