New tetradentate N,N,N,N-chelating α-diimine ligands and their corresponding zinc and nickel complexes: synthesis, characterisation and testing as olefin polymerisation catalysts.

A series of zinc complexes of the general formula {[ZnCl(ArN=C(An)-C(An)=NAr)](+)}(2)[Zn(2)Cl(6)](2-) (where Ar = 2-(1-benzyl-1H-1,2,3-triazol-4-yl)phenyl 2a, 2-(1-(1-phenylethyl)-1H-1,2,3-triazol-4-yl)phenyl 2b, 2-(1-phenyl-1H-1,2,3-triazol-4-yl)phenyl 2c; An = acenaphthene backbone) were prepared by the condensation of acenaphthenequinone with the corresponding o-triazolyl-substituted anilines (2-(1-benzyl-1H-1,2,3-triazol-4-yl)aniline 1a, 2-(1-(1-phenylethyl)-1H-1,2,3-triazol-4-yl)aniline 1b, 2-(1-phenyl-1H-1,2,3-triazol-4-yl)aniline 1c) which were formed by the copper(I)-catalyzed Huisgen[3+2] dipolar cycloaddition between 2-ethynylaniline and the corresponding azides in high yields, using anhydrous ZnCl(2) as the metal template, in boiling glacial acetic acid. Zinc complexes of the type [ZnCl(ArN=C(An)-C(An)=NAr)](+)[ZnCl(3)(NCCH(3))](-) (4a-c) were synthesized by crystallisation of the corresponding complexes 2a-c in acetonitrile, at -20 °C. After removal of zinc dichloride from complexes 2a-c by the addition of potassium oxalate, in dichloromethane, the tetradentate N,N,N,N-chelating α-diimine ligands of the type ArN=C(An)-C(An)=NAr (5a-c) were obtained. The new ligand precursors and zinc complexes were characterised by elemental analysis, (1)H and (13)C{(1)H} NMR spectroscopy, two-dimensional NMR spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction. Reaction of the ligand precursors 5a-c with [NiBr(2)(DME)], in dichloromethane, gave nickel complexes of the type [NiBr(2)(ArN=C(An)-C(An)=NAr)] (6a-c). The results of single crystal X-ray diffraction characterisation and magnetic susceptibility measurements demonstrated that nickel complexes 6a-c possess octahedral geometries around the nickel atoms with variable configurations, the Br atoms of which can be ionized when dissolved in methanol. In preliminary catalytic tests, complexes 6a-c revealed to be active as catalysts for the polymerisation of norbornene and styrene, when activated by cocatalyst MAO. The characterisation of the polymers by (1)H and (13)C{(1)H} NMR spectroscopy, gel permeation chromatography/size-exclusion chromatography (GPC/SEC) revealed that these polymers were formed by a coordination addition mechanism.