Synthesis and Electrochemistry of Schiff Base Cobalt(III) Complexes and Their Catalytic Activity for Copolymerization of Epoxide and Carbon Dioxide

A series of cobalt complexes with N,N,O,O-tetradentate Schiff base ligands were prepared. All the complexes were characterized by spectroscopy and electrochemical methods. An X-ray crystal structure analysis revealed that L-1-Co-III-dnp was monomeric with a six-coordinated central cobalt(III) atom in the solid state. The complexes were employed as catalysts for the alternating copolymerization of CO2 and racemic propylene oxide. End group analysis of the resulting polymer provided strong evidence for a monomer insertion mechanism for the propagation step. The catalytic activity was interpreted using the redox potential of cobalt(II/III) for the L-Co-III-dnp complexes, which offered a measure of the bond strength, or the degree of inertness of the axial ligand, to promote or suppress the monomer insertion.