Synthesis, Structure, and Reductive Elimination Chemistry of Three-Coordinate Arylpalladium Amido Complexes

Four three-coordinate arylpalladium amido complexes with a single hindered phosphine were isolated and structurally characterized. Each possessed a T-shaped geometry. Several of these complexes possessed true three-coordinate structures that lacked any additional coordination by ligand C-H bonds. All of the three-coordinate complexes underwent reductive elimination to form the corresponding triarylamine. A comparison of the rate of reaction of the three-coordinate compounds demonstrated that the rate of elimination from the pentaphenylferrocenyl di-tert-butylphosphine complex were the fastest. A comparison of the rates of reactions between three-coordinate and four-coordinate complexes showed that the rates were much faster from the three-coordinate complexes.