Boryllithium: A novel boron nucleophile and its application in the synthesis of borylmetal complexes

The first boryl anion, boryllithium, was synthesized by a reduction of bromoborane precursor using lithium naphthalenide in tetrahydrofuran (THF) solvent at -45 degrees C. Structural and spectroscopic study revealed an ionic character of B-Li bond. Boryllithium could be utilized as a Source of boryl ligand in the transition-metal chemistry. Structural and spectroscopic features of the resulting boryl complexes confirmed the large trans influence of boryl ligand.