Rare-earth-metal alkylaluminates supported by N-donor-functionalized cyclopentadienyl ligands: C-H bond activation and performance in isoprene polymerization.

Homoleptic tetramethylaluminate complexes [Ln(AlMe4)3] (Ln=La, Nd, Y) reacted with HCp(NMe2) (Cp(NMe2) =1-[2-(N,N-dimethylamino)-ethyl]-2,3,4,5-tetramethyl-cyclopentadienyl) in pentane at -35 °C to yield half-sandwich rare-earth-metal complexes, [{C5 Me4CH2CH2NMe2 (AlMe3)}Ln(AlMe4)2]. Removal of the N-donor-coordinated trimethylaluminum group through donor displacement by using an equimolar amount of Et2O at ambient temperature only generated the methylene-bridged complexes [{C5Me4CH2CH2NMe(μ-CH2)AlMe3}Ln(AlMe4)] with the larger rare-earth-metal ions lanthanum and neodymium. X-ray diffraction analysis revealed the formation of isostructural complexes and the C-H bond activation of one aminomethyl group. The formation of Ln(μ-CH2)Al moieties was further corroborated by (13)C and (1)H-(13)C HSQC NMR spectroscopy. In the case of the largest metal center, lanthanum, this C-H bond activation could be suppressed at -35 °C, thereby leading to the isolation of [(Cp(NMe2))La(AlMe4)2], which contains an intramolecularly coordinated amino group. The protonolysis reaction of [Ln(AlMe4)3] (Ln=La, Nd) with the anilinyl-substituted cyclopentadiene HCp(AMe2) (Cp(AMe2) =1-[1-(N,N-dimethylanilinyl)]-2,3,4,5-tetramethylcyclopentadienyl) at -35 °C generated the half-sandwich complexes [(Cp(AMe2))Ln(AlMe4)2]. Heating these complexes at 75 °C resulted in the C-H bond activation of one of the anilinium methyl groups and the formation of [{C5Me4C6H4NMe(μ-CH2)AlMe3}Ln(AlMe4)] through the elimination of methane. In contrast, the smaller yttrium metal center already gave the aminomethyl-activated complex at -35 °C, which is isostructural to those of lanthanum and neodymium. The performance of complexes [{C5Me4CH2CH2NMe(μ-CH2 )AlMe3}-Ln(AlMe4)], [(Cp(AMe2))Ln(AlMe4)2], and [{C5Me4C6H4NMe(μ-CH2)AlMe3}Ln(AlMe4)] in the polymerization of isoprene was investigated upon activation with [Ph3C][B(C6F5)4], [PhNMe2 H][B(C6F5)4], and B(C6F5)3. The highest stereoselectivities were observed with the lanthanum-based pre-catalysts, thereby producing polyisoprene with trans-1,4 contents of up to 95.6 %. Narrow molecular-weight distributions (Mw/Mn <1.1) and complete consumption of the monomer suggested a living-polymerization mechanism.