Inorganic Chemistry, Vol.43, No.4, 1350-1358, 2004
New complexes of zirconium(IV) and hafnium(IV) with heteroscorpionate ligands and the hydrolysis of such complexes to give a zirconium cluster
A series of zirconium and hafnium heteroscorpionate complexes have been prepared by the reaction of MCl4 (M = Zr, Hf) with the compounds [{Li(bdmpza)(H2O)}(4)] [bdmpza = bis(3,5-dimethylpyrazol-1-yl)acetate], [{Li(bdmpzdta)(H2O)}(4)] [bdmpzdta = bis(3,5-dimethylpyrazol-1-yl)dithioacetate], and (Hbdmpze) [bdmpze = 2,2-bis(3,5-dimethylpyrazol-1 -yl)ethoxide] (the latter with the prior addition of (BuLi)-Li-n). Under the appropriate experimental conditions, mononuclear complexes, namely, [MCl3(kappa(3)-bdmpzx)] [x = a, M = Zr (1), Hf (2); x = dta, M = Zr (3), Hf (4); x = e, M = Zr (5), Hf (6)], and dinuclear complexes, namely, [{MCl2(mu-OH)(kappa(3)-bdmpzx)}(2)] [x = a, M = Zr (7), Hf (8); x = dta, M = Zr (9); x = e, M = Zr (10)], were isolated. A family of alkoxide-containing complexes of the general formula [ZrCl2(kappa(3)-bdmpzx)(OR)] [x = a, R = Me (11), Et (12), Pr-i (13), Bu-t (14); x = dta, R = Me (15), Et (16), Pr-i (17), Bu-t (18); x = e, R = Me (19), Et (20), Pr-i (21), Bu-t (22)] was also prepared. Complexes 11-14 underwent an interesting hydrolysis process to give the cluster complex [Zr-6(mu(3)-OH)(8)(OH)(8)(kappa(2)-bdmpza)(8)] (23). The structures of these complexes have been determined by spectroscopic methods, and the X-ray crystal structures of 7, 8, and 23 were also established.