On the Ability of Nickel Complexes Derived from Tripodal Aminopyridine Ligands to Catalyze Arene Hydroxylations.

The development of catalysts for the selective hydroxylation of aromatic C-H bonds is an essential challenge in current chemical research. The accomplishment of this goal requires the discovery of powerful metal-based oxidizing species capable of hydroxylating inert aromatic bonds in a selective manner, avoiding the generation of non-selective oxygen-centered radicals. Herein we show an investigation on the ability of nickel(ii) complexes supported by tripodal tetradentate aminopyridine ligands to catalyze the direct hydroxylation of benzene to phenol with H₂O₂ as oxidant. We have found that modifications on the ligand structure of the nickel complex do not translate into different reactivity, which differs from previous findings for nickel-based arene hydroxylations. Besides, several nickel(ii) salts have been found to be effective in the oxidation of aromatic C-H bonds. The use of fluorinated alcohols as solvent has been found to result in an increase in phenol yield; however, showing no more than two turn-overs per nickel. These findings raise questions on the nature of the oxidizing species responsible for the arene hydroxylation reaction.