Skip to main content
U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Synthesis and Photodriven Hydrogenation of Tungsten Nitride Complexes Prepared from Dinitrogen Cleavage

Journal Article · · JACS Au
Oxidation of the Chatt-type tungsten dinitrogen compound, trans-(depe)2W(N2)2 (depe = Et2PCH2CH2PEt2), with [(η5-C5H5)2Fe][BArF4] (BArF4 = B(3,5-(CF3)2C6H3)4) resulted in isolation of [(depe)2WN][BArF4], a rare example of a tungsten(IV) nitride prepared from N2 cleavage. A bimetallic μ-N2 ditungsten intermediate supported by terminal N2 ligands was identified, and irradiation with visible light promoted dinitrogen cleavage and formation of [(depe)2WN][BArF4]. Performing the analogous one-electron oxidation of the related tungsten dinitrogen compound, trans-(dppe)2W(N2)2 (dppe = Ph2PCH2CH2PPh2), furnished the corresponding cationic, 17-electron tungsten dinitrogen complex, [(dppe)2W(N2)2][BArF4], that was characterized by X-ray diffraction and vibrational and EPR spectroscopies. The generation of [(dppe)2W(N)][BArF4] was observed in low yield from the in situ formed mixed N2-bridged compound, [(N2)(depe)2W(μ-N2)W(dppe)2(N2)][BArF4]2, and was confirmed by independent synthesis using 1-azidoadamantane. Addition of ammonia or water to [(depe)2WN][BArF4] resulted in formation of the cationic imide and hydroxide complexes, [(depe)2W(NH)(X)][BArF4] (X = NH2, OH). Irradiation of [(depe)2WN][BArF4] with 440 nm visible light in the presence of Ir(ppy)3 (ppy = 2-phenylpyridine) under 4 atm of dihydrogen resulted in hydrogenation of the tungsten nitride to the cationic tungsten pentahydride, [(depe)2WH5][BArF4], with the release of free ammonia in 21% yield, a rare example of ammonia generation from dinitrogen and dihydrogen from a well-defined tungsten nitride.
Research Organization:
Princeton Univ., NJ (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES)
Grant/Contract Number:
SC0006498
OSTI ID:
2586793
Journal Information:
JACS Au, Journal Name: JACS Au Journal Issue: 8 Vol. 5; ISSN 2691-3704
Publisher:
American Chemical Society (ACS)Copyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

References (45)

Metal-Mediated Production of Isocyanates, R 3 ENCO from Dinitrogen, Carbon Dioxide, and R 3 ECl journal June 2015
Bimetallic Cooperative Cleavage of Dinitrogen to Nitride and Tandem Frustrated Lewis Pair Hydrogenation to Ammonia journal April 2019
Dinitrogen‐Molybdenum Complex Induces Dinitrogen Cleavage by One‐Electron Oxidation journal August 2019
Chemocatalytic Conversion of Dinitrogen to Ammonia Mediated by a Tungsten Complex journal January 2025
Frustrated Lewis Pair Chemistry Enables N 2 Borylation by Formal 1,3‐Addition of a B−H Bond in the Coordination Sphere of Tungsten journal October 2019
Reaction of Methyllithium with Group 6 Phosphine Dinitrogen Complexes journal March 2020
Raman spectra of gases. XV: Hydrazine and hydrazine-d4 journal April 1975
Dinitrogen and carbonyl complexes of tungsten(I) and molybdenum(I). The nature of ‘MoCl(N2)(dppe)2’ journal January 1980
Studies of the kinetics of the reactions of nitriles with dinitrogen complexes of molybdenum(0) and tungsten (0). Factors affecting the rate of dissociative loss of dinitrogen journal November 1979
Nitrogen Fixation via Splitting into Nitrido Complexes journal May 2021
Recent Advances in the Chemistry of Dinitrogen Complexes journal June 1995
An acidic .eta.2-dihydrogen complex protonating coordinated dinitrogen journal February 1991
Reduction Pathway of End-On Terminally Coordinated Dinitrogen. V. N−N Bond Cleavage in Mo/W Hydrazidium Complexes with Diphosphine Coligands. Comparison with Triamidoamine Systems journal May 2005
Bis(1,2-bis(diphenylphosphino)ethane)tungsten(0) Complexes Containing Electron-Saturated Metal Centers and Singly-Coordinated Bridging Ligands journal January 1996
Dinitrogen complexes of molybdenum(I) journal September 1972
Kinetics and Mechanism of N 2 Hydrogenation in Bis(cyclopentadienyl) Zirconium Complexes and Dinitrogen Functionalization by 1,2-Addition of a Saturated C−H Bond journal October 2005
Detection of Unusual Reaction Intermediates during the Conversion of W(N2)2(dppe)2 to W(H)4(dppe)2 and of H2O into H2 journal October 2012
N2 Hydrogenation from Activated End-On Bis(indenyl) Zirconium Dinitrogen Complexes journal October 2008
Dinitrogen Cleavage by Three-Coordinate Molybdenum(III) Complexes:  Mechanistic and Structural Data 1 journal January 1996
Lewis Structures and the Bonding Classification of End-on Bridging Dinitrogen Transition Metal Complexes journal February 2023
Synthesis of Collidine from Dinitrogen via a Tungsten Nitride journal March 2024
Photodriven Ammonia Synthesis from Manganese Nitrides: Photophysics and Mechanistic Investigations journal September 2024
Photodriven Ammonia Synthesis from N2 and H2: Recycling of a Molecular Molybdenum Nitride journal February 2025
N–H Bond Formation in a Manganese(V) Nitride Yields Ammonia by Light-Driven Proton-Coupled Electron Transfer journal February 2019
Cyanate Formation via Photolytic Splitting of Dinitrogen journal May 2021
N 2 Hydrogenation Promoted by a Side-On Bound Hafnocene Dinitrogen Complex journal February 2006
[W(CO)(dppe)2] Cumulenylidene and Acetylide Complexes Accessed via Stannylated Acetylenes and Butadiynes journal November 2010
Detonator of the population explosion journal July 1999
The reduction of mono-coordinated molecular nitrogen to ammonia in a protic environment journal January 1975
Hydrogenation and cleavage of dinitrogen to ammonia with a zirconium complex journal February 2004
Nitrogen reduction and functionalization by a multimetallic uranium nitride complex journal July 2017
Tandem electrocatalytic N2 fixation via proton-coupled electron transfer journal August 2022
Ammonia synthesis by photocatalytic hydrogenation of a N2-derived molybdenum nitride journal March 2022
Evaluation of excited state bond weakening for ammonia synthesis from a manganese nitride: stepwise proton coupled electron transfer is preferred over hydrogen atom transfer journal January 2019
Selectivity of tungsten mediated dinitrogen splitting vs. proton reduction journal January 2019
Diazene-N-(di-imide) and hydrazido-(2–)N-(aminoimido) complexes: the addition of acids to dinitrogen complexes journal January 1974
Dinitrogen functionalization with bis(cyclopentadienyl) complexes of zirconium and hafnium journal January 2007
Nitrogenopentammineruthenium(II) complexes journal January 1965
A new route to hydride, carbonyl, and bis-dinitrogen complexes of tungsten journal January 1970
N2 coordination journal January 2013
Vibrational assignment and potential function for t r a n s ‐diazene (diimide): Predictions for c i s ‐diazene journal July 1979
Dinitrogen cleavage and hydrogenation to ammonia with a uranium complex journal July 2022
Dinitrogen Cleavage by a Three-Coordinate Molybdenum(III) Complex journal May 1995
Transformation of Coordinated Dinitrogen by Reaction with Dihydrogen and Primary Silanes journal March 1997
Bimetallic System for Nitrogen Fixation: Ruthenium-Assisted Protonation of Coordinated N2 on Tungsten with H2 journal January 1998

Similar Records

Synthesis and reactivity of molybdenum and tungsten bis(dinitrogen) complexes supported by diphosphine chelates containing pendant amines
Journal Article · Mon Apr 30 00:00:00 EDT 2012 · Dalton Transactions · OSTI ID:1039844

Synthesis and characterization of novel group VI metal (Mo, W) nitride and oxide compounds
Thesis/Dissertation · Sun Feb 22 23:00:00 EST 1998 · OSTI ID:587893

Ammonia synthesis by photocatalytic hydrogenation of a N2-derived molybdenum nitride
Journal Article · Thu Mar 24 00:00:00 EDT 2022 · Nature Synthesis · OSTI ID:1987945