Beta-H transfer from the metallacyclobutane: a key step in the deactivation and byproduct formation for the well-defined silica-supported rhenium alkylidene alkene metathesis catalyst.

The surface complex [([triple bond]SiO)Re([triple bond]CtBu)(=CHtBu)(CH2tBu)] (1) is a highly efficient propene metathesis catalyst with high initial activities and a good productivity. However, it undergoes a fast deactivation process with time on stream, which is first order in active sites and ethene. Noteworthy, 1-butene and pentenes, unexpected products in the metathesis of propene, are formed as primary products, in large amount relative to Re (>>1 equiv/Re), showing that their formation is not associated with the formation of inactive species.

Detailed structural investigation of the grafting of [Ta(=CHtBu)(CH2tBu)3] and [Cp*TaMe4] on silica partially dehydroxylated at 700 degrees C and the activity of the grafted complexes toward alkane metathesis.

The reaction of [Ta(=CHtBu)(CH2tBu)3] or [Cp*Ta(CH3)4] with a silica partially dehydroxylated at 700 degrees C gives the corresponding monosiloxy surface complexes [([triple bond]SiO)Ta(=CHtBu)(CH2tBu)2] and [([triple bond]SiO)Ta(CH3)3Cp*] by eliminating a sigma-bonded ligand as the corresponding alkane (H-CH2tBu or H-CH3). EXAFS data show that an adjacent siloxane bridge of the surface plays the role of an extra surface ligand, which most likely stabilizes these complexes as in [([triple bond]SiO)Ta(=CHtBu)(CH2tBu)2([triple bond]SiOSi[triple bond])] (1a') and [([triple bond]SiO)Ta(CH3)3Cp*([triple bond]SiOSi[triple bond])] (2a'). In the case of [(SiO)Ta(=CHtBu)(CH2tBu)2([triple bond]SiOSi[triple bond])], the structure is further stabilized by an additional interaction: a C-H agostic bond as evidenced by the small J coupling constant for the carbenic C-H (JC-H = 80 Hz), which was measured by J-resolved 2D solid-state NMR spectroscopy.

Hydrogenolysis of cycloalkanes on a tantalum hydride complex supported on silica and insight into the deactivation pathway by the combined use of 1D solid-state NMR and EXAFS spectroscopies.

Hydrogenolysis of cyclic alkanes is catalysed by [(triple bond)SiO)(2)Ta-H] (1) at 160 degrees C and leads to lower alkanes and cyclic alkanes including cyclopentane. The turnover number is correlated with the number of carbon atoms of the cyclic alkanes, and therefore while cycloheptane is readily transformed, cyclopentane does not give any product (<1 %). The mechanism of ring contraction probably involves carbene de-insertion as a key carbon-carbon bond-cleavage step.

Re-based heterogeneous catalysts for olefin metathesis prepared by surface organometallic chemistry: reactivity and selectivity.

Herein we describe the catalytic activity of 1, a well-defined Re alkylidene complex supported silica, in the reaction of olefin metathesis. This system is highly active for terminal and internal olefins with initial rates up to 0.7 mol per mol Re per s.

Homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis: bridging the gap through surface organometallic chemistry.

Surface organometallic chemistry is an area of heterogeneous catalysis which has recently emerged as a result of a comparative analysis of homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis. The chemical industry has often favored heterogeneous catalysis, but the development of better catalysts has been hindered by the presence of numerous kinds of active sites and also by the low concentration of active sites. These factors have precluded a rational improvement of these systems, hence the empirical nature of heterogeneous catalysis.

Perhydrocarbyl ReVII complexes: comparison of molecular and surface complexes.

The molecular complex [Re(=CtBu)(=CHtBu)(CH2tBu)2] 1 reacts with a silica partially dehydroxylated at 700 degrees C to give syn-2, [(=SiO)Re(=CtBu)(=CHtBu)(CH2tBu)], as a single isomer according to mass-balance analysis, IR, and solid-state NMR spectroscopy. 1D and 2D solid-state NMR (HETCOR and long-range HETCOR) on a 13C-labeled-2 has allowed us to observe the chemical shifts of all carbons (including those that are not labeled) and ascertain their assignments. Moreover, EXAFS data are consistent with the presence of two carbons at a relatively short distance (1.

Cationic Gold(I) Complexes: Highly Efficient Catalysts for the Addition of Alcohols to Alkynes.

Gold complexes are almost unknown in homogeneous catalysis, and for a long time gold was even thought of as "catalytically dead". This is clearly not the case for cationic phosphanegold(I) complexes (see reaction below), which can catalyze the addition of alcohols to alkynes with turnover frequencies up to 1.5 s and total turnover numbers up to 10 ! R=H, alkyl, Ph, CH OH.