Syntheses, structures and electrochemical properties of ruthenium(II/III) complexes with tetradentate Schiff base ligands

Abstract

Three unsymmetrical tetradentate Schiff base ligands, H2salipn, H2salipn-Br4 and H2salipn-Cl2, have been synthesized from the typical condensation reactions of treating 1,2-diaminopropane with salicylaldehyde, 3,5-dibromosalicylaldehyde and 5-chlorosalicylaldehyde, respectively. Treatment of [RuCl2(PPh3)3] with one equivalent of H2salipn or H2salipn-Br4 in the presence of triethylamine in tetrahydrofuran (THF) afforded the corresponding ruthenium(III) complexes [RuIIICl(PPh3)(salipn)] (1) and [RuIIICl(PPh3)(salipn-Br4)] (2). Interaction of [RuHCl(CO)(PPh3)3] with one equivalent of H2salipn-Cl2 or H2salipn-Br4 under the same conditions led to isolation of ruthenium(II) complexes [RuII(CO)(PPh3)(salalipn-Cl2)] (3) and [RuII(CO)(PPh3)(salalipn-Br4)] (4), respectively, in which one of the imine bonds was nucleophilically attacked by hydride to result in the formation of a mixed imine-amine ligand. The molecular structures of 1⋅1.5CH2Cl2, 2, 3⋅0.5CH2Cl2 and 4 have been determined by single-crystal X-ray crystallography. The electrochemical properties of 1–4 were also investigated. Their cyclic voltammograms displayed quasi-reversible Ru(IV)/Ru(III) and Ru(III)/Ru(II) couples with Eo ranging from 0.67 to 1.05 V and 0.74 to 0.80 V vs. Ag/AgCl (0.1 M), respectively.