C-o bond cleavage of diethyl ether and tetrahydrofurane by [(dpp-BIAN)AlI(Et2O)] [dpp-BIAN=1,2-bis[(2,6-di-iso-propylphenyl)-iminolacenaphthene]

At elevated temperatures, the aluminum complex [(dpp-BIAN)AlI(Et2O)] (1) splits the C-O bonds of diethyl ether and tetrahydrofurane yielding the dimeric alkoxides [(dpp-BIAN)AlOEt](2) (2) and [(dpp-BIAN)AlO(CH2)(4)I](2) (3), respectively Already at ambient temperatures, a cleavage of the C-O bond of THF is to observe in the reaction of 1 with CpNa in THF as confirmed by the formation of [(dpp-BIAN)AlO(CH2)(4)C5H5](2) (4a) and [(dpp-BIAN)Al{O(CH2)(4)C5H5}(THF)] (4b) in a molar ratio of 1:2. The reaction of 1 with t-BuOK affords the monomeric alkoxide [(dpp-BIAN)AlO-t-Bu(Et2O)] (5). Compounds 2, 3, and 4a/b were characterized by elemental analyses and IR spectra. Additionally, the structures of 2 and 3 were determined by single crystal X-ray diffraction.