Electrochemical Properties of a Rhodium(III) Mono-Terpyridyl Complex and Use as a Catalyst for Light-Driven Hydrogen Evolution in Water.

Molecular hydrogen (H) is considered one of the most promising fuels to decarbonize the industrial and transportation sectors, and its photocatalytic production from molecular catalysts is a research field that is still abounding. The search for new molecular catalysts for H production with simple and easily synthesized ligands is still ongoing, and the terpyridine ligand with its particular electronic and coordination properties, is a good candidate to design new catalysts meeting these requirements. Herein, we have isolated the new mono-terpyridyl rhodium complex, [Rh(tpy)(CHCN)Cl](CFSO) (), and shown that it can act as a catalyst for the light-induced proton reduction into H in water in the presence of the [Ru(bpy)]Cl () photosensitizer and ascorbate as sacrificial electron donor.