One-Pot Synthesis of High-Strained Metal Vinylidene and Metal Carbyne

A novel one-pot reaction producing a metal vinylidene structure in a five-membered ring by cyclization of a multiyne has been achieved. The ring strain and the high stability of the cyclic metal vinylidene complexes have been analyzed experimentally and computationally. The metal vinylidene unit in a fused-ring complex is unreactive to both nucleophiles and electrophiles. It reacts however at the nearby carbonyl group achieving the unprecedented conversion of metal tributing factors for the aromaticity-driven process has been studied by DFT calculations.

Automated summary

A one-pot reaction has been successfully used to synthesize a five-membered ring with a metal vinylidene structure. The strain and stability of the cyclic metal vinylidene complexes have been analyzed experimentally and computationally. The metal vinylidene unit is unreactive to nucleophiles and electrophiles but reacts at the nearby carbonyl group.