Interaction of diphenylacetylene and other acetylenes with hydridonitrosyltris(triphenylphosphine)ruthenium, carbonylhydridotris(triphenylphosphine)-rhodium and -iridium

Abstract

Hydridonitrosyltris(triphenylphosphine), RuH(NO)(PPh₃)₃, and an excess of diphenylacetylene react slowly in refluxing toluene to form the dimer, 1 -benzylidene-2,3-diphenylindene, as the only organic product. No ruthenium complex intermediates could be isolated, but on the basis of n.m.r. studiesamechanism is proposed for the reaction.

The reactions of diphenylacetylene with the carbonyl complexes, MH(CO)(PPh₃)₃(M = Rh and Ir) which are isoelectronic and isostructural with RuH(NO)(PPh₃)₃, have also been studied and in these cases the metal complex species can be characterised by analysis and i.r. and ¹H and ³¹P n.m.r. spectroscopy.