Selective Transformation of CO to CO at a Single Nickel Center

Carbon dioxide conversion mediated by transition metal complexes continues to attract much attention because of its future potential utilization as a nontoxic and inexpensive C1 source for the chemical industry. Given the presence of nickel in natural systems that allow for extremely efficient catalysis, albeit in an Fe cluster arrangement, studies that focus on selective CO conversion with synthetic nickel species are currently of considerable interest in our group. In this Account, the selective conversion of CO to carbon monoxide occurring at a single nickel center is discussed. The chemistry is based on a series of related nickel pincer complexes with attention to the uniqueness of the coordination geometry, which is crucial in allowing for particular reactivity toward CO. Our research is inspired by the efficient enzymatic CO catalysis occurring at the active site of carbon monoxide dehydrogenase. Since the binding and reactivity toward CO are controlled in part by the geometry of a LNi scaffold, we have explored the chemistry of low-valent nickel supported by PPP and PNP ligands, in which a pseudotetrahedral or square-planar geometry is accommodated. Two isolated nickel-CO adducts, (PPP)Ni(η-CO-κ C) (2) and {Na(12-C-4)}{(PNP)Ni(η-CO-κ C)} (7), clearly demonstrate that the geometry of the nickel ion is crucial in the binding of CO and its level of activation. In the case of a square-planar nickel center supported by a PNP ligand, a series of bimetallic metallacarboxylate Ni-μ-CO-κ C, O-M species (M = H, Na, Ni, Fe) were synthesized, and their structural features and reactivity were studied. Protonation cleaves the C-O bond, resulting in the formation of a nickel(II) monocarbonyl complex. By sequential reduction, the corresponding mono- and zero-valent Ni-CO species were produced. The reactivities of three nickel carbonyl species toward various iodoalkanes and CO were explored to address whether their corresponding reactivities could be controlled by the number of valence d electrons. In particular, a (PNP)Ni(0)-CO species (13) shows immediate reactivity toward CO but displays multiple product formation. By incorporation of a -CMe- bridging unit, a structurally rigidified PNP ligand was newly designed and produced. This ligand modification was successful in preparing the T-shaped nickel(I) metalloradical species 9 exhibiting open-shell reactivity due to the sterically exposed nickel center possessing a half-filled d orbital. More importantly, the selective addition of CO to a nickel(0)-CO species was enabled to afford a nickel(II)-carboxylate species (22) with the expulsion of CO(g). Finally, the (PNP)Ni system provides a synthetic cycle in the study of the selective conversion of CO to CO that involves two-electron reduction of Ni-CO followed by the direct addition of CO to release the coordinated CO ligand.