Reversible formation of a high-spin cobalt(II) complex of the neutral dioxygen ligand
Abstract
The high-spin cobalt(II) complex [Co(pfp)2(H2O)2]2–(pfp = perfluoropinacolato dianion) reacts reversibly with oxygen to give the ion [Co(pfp)(Hpfp)O2]–, isolated as a stable tetralkylammonium salt; no oxidation of the cobalt atom appears to have occurred, and it is thought that the oxygen is attached to the metal by π-bonding.