Combination of vinyl, phenyl and carbonyl ligands in ruthenium(II) complexes: a route to vinyl ketones
Abstract
Conversion of chloride complexes [Ru(CO)2(CHCHR)Cl(PMe2Ph)2](R = CMe3 or Ph) into the corresponding phenyl complexes [Ru(CO)2(CHCHR)Ph(PMe2Ph)2] by low-temperature treatment with LiPh is accompanied by a change in the ligand arrangement around the metal. At 20 °C the products undergo two competing rearrangement processes, one a simple isomerisation back to a ligand arrangement analogous to that in [Ru(CO)2(CHCHR)Cl(PMe2Ph)2] and the other a remarkably facile combination of phenyl, carbonyl and vinyl ligands to yield the ketone complexes [Ru(CO)(η4-PhCOCHCHR)(PMe2Ph)2], from which the ketone may be liberated by treatment with Me3CNC.