Synthesis of tetraferrocenylbenzene by cycloaddition reaction with alkyl cobalt clusters as reaction precursors

Two tetraferrocenylbenzene derivatives, 1-trimethylsilyl-2,3,4,5-tetraferrocenylbenzene (1) and 1,2,4,5-tetraferrocenylbenzene (2), were synthesized by cycloaddition reactions of alkynes with Co-2(CO)(6)((2)-alkyne) as reaction precursors and characterized by elemental analysis, FT-IR, NMR, and MS. The molecular structures of 1 and 2 were identified by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The redox properties were studied by cyclic voltammetry and square wave voltammetry, which indicated stronger electronic communication among ferrocenyl units.