Geometrical variety in heptanuclear clusters of osmium; crystal structures of [Os7H2(CO)21] and [Os7H2(CO)22]

Abstract

Treatment of the cluster [Os₆(CO)₁₈] with Me₃NO in the presence of [OsH₂(CO)₄] affords the new heptanuclear cluster compounds [Os₇H₂(CO)₂₂](1) and [Os₇H₂(CO)₂₁](2), and the known compound [Os₇H₂(CO)₂₀](3), which have been shown by X-ray diffraction studies to exhibit novel metal geometries; these clusters are interconvertible by stepwise loss (and, in one case, gain) of CO.