Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: Metal nitride species are recognized as key intermediates in the conversion of dinitrogen (N 2 ) to ammonia (NH 3 ). In this work, we report the isolation of a multimetallic nitride-bridged thorium complex ( 2 ) by completely cleaving the N≡N triple bond of N 2 . The complex was synthesized through the reduction of a thorium precursor, {N[CH 2 CH 2 N–P i Pr 2 ] 3 ThCl} 2 ( 1 ) and chromium dichloride (CrCl 2 ) using potassium graphite (KC 8 ) under an N 2 atmosphere. Isotopic labeling with 15 N 2 confirms that the nitride in complex 2 originates from N 2 . Under ambient conditions, complex 2 exhibits remarkable catalytic activity, converting N 2 to silylamine with yields of up to 9.9 equiv per thorium molecular catalyst. This work not only represents the first isolation of a thorium nitride complex from N 2 reduction but also provides a rare example of N 2 functionalization promoted by an actinide catalyst.
DOI: 10.1021/jacs.4c18519
Language: English
Subfield: Organic Chemistry
Field: Chemistry
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
Funders: Alexander von Humboldt-Stiftung, Henan Normal University, National Natural Science Foundation of China, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province, National Key Research and Development Program of China, Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities
OpenAlex ID: W4407875393