A trinuclear aqua cyano-bridged ruthenium complex [{(η5-C5H5)(PPh3)2Ru(μ-CN)}2RuCl2(PPh3)(H2O)]PF6: synthesis, characterization and crystal structure

Abstract

The organometallic trinuclear aqua cyano-bridged complex [{(η5-C5H5)(PPh3)2Ru(µ-CN)}2RuCl2(PPh3)(H2O)]PF6 (1), in which the fragment [RuCl2(PPh3)(H2O)] acts as a bridge and an acceptor group between the two terminal cyclopentadienyl ruthenium cyano moieties, was isolated in moderate yield from the reaction of [(η5-C5H5)(PPh3)2RuCN] with [RuCl2(PPh3)3] in THF. To the best of our knowledge, compound 1 is one of the few examples of a trinuclear array of ruthenium fragments bridged by the nitrogen atom of the –C N– group (Ru–C N–Ru –N C–Ru) with a Ru-coordinated water molecule. The new aqua complex was structurally characterized by FTIR, 1H, 13C, and 31P NMR spectroscopy, mass spectrometry, elemental analysis, single-crystal X-ray diffraction, and cyclic voltammetry. The title complex crystallizes in a triclinic unit cell a = 17.3477(6) Å, b = 17.8551(5) Å, c = 18.2460(7) Å, α = 95.693(2)°, β = 111.648(2)°, and γ = 97.839(2)° in the space group P1 ¯ with Z = 2.