10.1016/j.tet.2014.05.060
The study focuses on the synthesis, structure, and catalytic investigation of a novel six-coordinated cationic ruthenium carbyne complex with labile pyridine ligands. The complex was prepared through the oxidation of a ruthenium-based complex with iodine and demonstrated moderate to good catalytic activity for ring-closing metathesis reactions. Notably, it did not produce any double bond isomerization by-products at elevated temperatures. The researchers proposed a mechanism involving the in situ conversion of the ruthenium carbyne to a carbene through the addition of an iodide to the carbyne carbon and supported this with Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations. The study also compared the performance of this complex with other known catalysts, highlighting its unique feature of lacking olefin isomerization tendencies under harsh conditions, which is a common issue with many ruthenium carbene catalysts.