Distinct electronic effects on reductive eliminations of symmetrical and unsymmetrical bis-aryl platinum complexes

Symmetrical bis-aryl platinum complexes (DPPF)Pt(C6H4-4-R)(2) (R = NMe2, OMe, CH3, H, Cl, CF3) and electronically unsymmetrical bis-aryl platinum complexes (DPPF)Pt(C6H4-4-R) (C6H4-4-X) (R = CH3, X = NMe2, OMe, H, Cl, F, CF3; R = OMe, X = NMe2, H, Cl, F, CF3; R = CF3, X = H, Cl, NMe2; and R = NMe2, X = H, Cl) were prepared, and the rates of reductive elimination of these complexes in the presence of excess PPh3 are reported. The platinum complexes reductively eliminated biaryl compounds in quantitative yields with first-order rate constants that were independent of the concentration of PPh3. Plots of Log(k(obs)/k(obs(H))) vs Hammett substituent constants (sigma) of the para substituents R and X showed that the rates of reductive elimination reactions depended on two different electronic properties. The reductive elimination from symmetrical bis-aryl platinum complexes occurred faster from complexes with more electron-donating para substituents R. However, reductive elimination from a series of electronically unsymmetrical bis-aryl complexes was not faster from complexes with the more electron-donating substituents. Instead, reductive elimination was faster from complexes with a larger difference in the electronic properties of the substituents on the two platinum-bound aryl groups. The two electronic effects can complement or cancel each other. Thus, this combination of electronic effects gives rise to complex, but now more interpretable, free energy relationships for reductive elimination.