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doi.org/10.1002/ejic.202100425
is 7.6 kcalmolÀ 1 more stable than the origin. Then, Ph2SiH2
interacts with 2 through TS2 (16.9 kcalmolÀ 1), and this step is
associated to the highest energy barrier (24.5 kcalmolÀ 1) of the
whole process. Lastly, from TS2, the resulting silyl ether product
is released, and the nickel hydride complex is regenerated,
closing the catalytic cycle. The values extracted from this
theoretical analysis are consistent with the experimental
observations: i) during the catalytic reaction 2 was the only
nickel species observed by NMR spectroscopy at room temper-
ature; ii) the formation of 2 is instantaneous at room temper-
ature while the hydrosilylation step requires several hours to
reach completion.
received. Solution NMR spectra were recorded on Bruker DRX-400
spectrometer and they were referenced to external SiMe4 (δ 0 ppm)
using the residual protio solvent peaks as internal standard (1H
NMR experiments) or the characteristic resonances of the solvent
nuclei (13C NMR experiments). 11B NMR spectra were referenced to
an external standard of BF3·Et2O. 31P NMR chemical shifts were
referenced to an external 85% solution of H3PO4 in the adequate
solvent. NiBr2(dme) was purchased from Aldrich and used as
received. [(tBuPBP)NiBr], [(tBuPBP)NiMe] and [(tBuPBP)NiH] (1) were
prepared as previously described.[21]
Synthetic procedures
Finally, we have investigated the electronic effect of the
substituents in the para position of the aryl fragment calculat-
ing the energy profile for this reaction with p-NO2-benzalde-
hyde and p-NMe2-benzaldehyde (See ESI).The insertion of the
CÀ O bond into the NiÀ H bond to form the corresponding
alkoxide complex is exergonic in both cases (ΔG=À 12.7 and
À 1.4 kcalmolÀ 1 respectively) and the activation energy is lower
for the aldehyde bearing the more electrophilic carbonyl carbon
(Ea(NO2)=15.4 vs Ea(NMe2)=25.6 kcalmolÀ 1) which is in accord-
ance with a mechanism involving a nucleophilic hydride
addition. The second step, the hydrosilylation of the alkoxide
complex, requires higher activation barriers than the first step,
as observed for benzaldehyde, though the reaction is facilitated
by electron-donor substituents on the para position (Ea(NMe2)=
23.5 vs Ea(NO2)=25.3 kcalmolÀ 1) that increase the nucleophilic
character of the alkoxide species easing the reaction towards
Ph2SiH2. These numbers are consistent with the experimental
observations (See Table 2 and Table 3).
Catalytic reactions and Spectroscopic Characterization Data for
the Alcohol Products
In a glove box, the corresponding aldehyde or ketone and Ph2SiH2
were added (first the carbonyl derivative (0.196 mmol) followed by
the silane (0.196 mmol) to a J. Young NMR tube containing a
solution of 1 (0.0098 mmol) in 400 μL of C6D6. Then, the tube was
sealed, and the reaction progress was monitored by 1H NMR
spectroscopy. The catalytic hydrosilylation reaction was performed
°
at room temperature for aldehydes and at 70 C for ketones. The
conversion was determined by 1H NMR. Once the reaction was
completed, the solution was treated with a THF solution of TBAF
(200 μl, 0.2 mmol) and stirred at room temperature for 15 minutes.
Then, the volatiles were removed under vacuum and 5 mL of water
were added. The organic product was extracted with diethyl ether
(2 x 6 mL). The combined organic layers were dried over anhydrous
MgSO4, filtered and the solvent was removed under reduce
pressure. The alcohol products with high boiling points were
purified by short silica gel column chromatography using ethyl
acetate-hexanes mixtures (5 to 10%). Those alcohols with low
boiling points were purified by distillation. All the alcohol products
have been characterized by 1H NMR and the spectroscopic data
were identical to previously reported data (See ESI for details).
Conclusion
Synthesis and NMR characterization of [tBu(PBP)Ni(OCH2Ph)]
(2)
Our catalytic studies indicate that, by using a pincer ligand with
a boryl group at the central atom, the enhanced nucleophilic
character of the hydride group trans to it facilitates the
hydrosilylation of ketones compared to other analogous pincer
systems. On the contrary, our system proved to be less active
for the hydrosilylation of aldehydes. We observed that both
aromatic and aliphatic substrates are easily reduced to the
corresponding silyl ether being the latter more efficiently
reduced that the former. Electron-donating groups on the para
position of the aryl ring increase the rate of the reaction while
no conversion was observed with ketones bearing heteroar-
omatic substituents such as pyridine or thiophene. Both DFT
analysis and the experimental observations point to a hydride
mechanism for the hydrosilylation of aldehydes and ketones.
Complex 2 was prepared following a slightly modified procedure to
that previously reported by our group: (11 mg, 0.02 mmol) of
[
tBu(PBP)NiMe] were dissolved in 400 μL of C6D6 in a J. Young valve
NMR tube, then the tube was degassed via three freeze-pump-thaw
°
cycles, charged with H2 (4 bar) and heated at 70 C for 4 hours. After
checking by 1H and 31P {1H} NMR spectroscopy that the reaction
was completed, the tube was degassed again and 2.2 μL
1
(0.02 mmol) of benzaldehyde were added at room temperature. H
and 31P{1H} NMR spectra confirmed the instantaneous and clean
formation of complex 2. Attempts to purify it or isolate it led to its
1
3
decomposition. H NMR (400 MHz, C6D6): 1.28 (t, JHP =6.4 Hz, 36H,
tBu); 3.49 (s, 4H, NCH2); 5.35 (s, 2H, OCH2); 6.87 (dd, (3JHH =6 Hz, JHH
4
=3 Hz, CH aromatic); 7.09 (dd, (3JHH =6 Hz, 4JHH =3 Hz, CH aromatic);
3
3
7.18 (t, JHH =8 Hz; p-CH phenyl); 7.40 (t, JHH =8 Hz; m-CH phenyl);
7.80 (t, JHH =8 Hz; o-CH phenyl). 31P{1H} (162 MHz, C6D6): 82.1 ppm;
3
11B{1H} (128 MHz, C6D6): 38 ppm; 13C{1H} (100 MHz, C6D6): 29.3 (s, tBu-
3
t
3
CH3); 34.4 (t, JCP =4.5 Hz, BuÀ Cq); 39.8 (t, JCP =18.5 Hz, NCH2); 72.9
(s, OCH2); 107.9 (s, CH aromatic-PBP); 118.2 (s, CH aromatic-PBP);
124.8 (s, CH aromatic-Ph); 126.2 (s, CH aromatic-Ph); 133.5 (s,
CqÀ Ph); 139.2 (s, Cq aromatic-PBP).
Experimental Section
General: All manipulations were carried out using standard Schlenk
and glove box techniques under an atmosphere of argon or of high
purity nitrogen, respectively. All solvents were dried and degassed
prior to use. Benzene-d6 (C6D6) was distilled under argon over
sodium and then degassed and dried over 4 Å molecular sieves. All
other compounds were commercially available and were used as
Eur. J. Inorg. Chem. 2021, 2993–2998
2997
© 2021 The Authors. European Journal of Inorganic Chemistry published
by Wiley-VCH GmbH