| Sumario: | The saturated trihydride IrH3{¿3-P, O, P-[xant(PiPr2)2]} (1; xant(PiPr2)2 = 9, 9-dimethyl-4, 5-bis(diisopropylphosphino)xanthene) coordinates the Si-H bond of triethylsilane, 1, 1, 1, 3, 5, 5, 5-heptamethyltrisiloxane, and triphenylsilane to give the s-complexes IrH3(¿2-H-SiR3){¿2-cis-P, P-[xant(PiPr2)2]}, which evolve to the dihydride-silyl derivatives IrH2(SiR3){¿3-P, O, P-[xant(PiPr2)2]} (SiR3 = SiEt3 (2), SiMe(OSiMe3)2 (3), SiPh3 (4)) by means of the oxidative addition of the coordinated bond and the subsequent reductive elimination of H2. Complexes 2-4 activate a C-H bond of symmetrically and asymmetrically substituted arenes to form silylated arenes and to regenerate 1. This sequence of reactions defines a cycle for the catalytic direct C-H silylation of arenes. Stoichiometric isotopic experiments and the kinetic analysis of the transformations demonstrate that the C-H bond rupture is the rate-determining step of the catalysis. As a consequence, the selectivity of the silylation of substituted arenes is generally governed by ligand-substrate steric interactions.
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