Transition metal-alkane σ-complexes with oxygen donor co-ligands.

A new family of long-lived alkane σ-complexes of the type (L(OEt))Re(CO)(2)(alkane) [alkane = cyclopentane, cyclohexane, pentane; L(OEt) = cyclopentadienyltris(diethylphosphito)cobaltate(III)] has been observed using both IR and NMR spectroscopies and computationally interrogated with DFT methods. The oxygen-rich coordination spheres makes these complexes perhaps more relevant as models for intermediates in metal oxide mediated hydrocarbon transformations than other known alkane σ-complexes.