Synthesis of N‑Aryloxy-β-diketiminate Ligands and Coordination to Zirconium, Ytterbium, Thorium, and Uranium

Two examples of N-aryloxy-β-diketiminate dianions (11a,b) have been synthesized on a multigram scale, in four steps, from commercially available chemicals. The synthetic scheme relies on the sequential addition of 2,6-diisopropylaniline and 2-amino-4-tert-butylphenol (1a) (or 2-amino-4,6-di-tert-butylphenol (1b)) to acetylacetone, using Et3OBF4 as an activation reagent. Both the nature of the activation reagent and the order of addition of the primary amines have a major impact on the outcome of the reaction, and acid catalysts (such as sulfuric acid or p-toluenesulfonic acid) lead to decomposition of the β-diketiminate backbone via formation of a benzoxazole derivative (3a,b). Using dianions 11a,b, mono- and bis­(N-aryloxy-β-diketiminate) complexes of zirconium­(IV), ytterbium­(III), thorium­(IV), and uranium­(IV) have been synthesized (12–18), by salt metathesis reactions, and characterized by a combination of 1H/13C NMR spectroscopy, elemental analysis, and X-ray crystallography. The two ligands differ in their steric bulk and exhibit different coordination behaviors, which were rationalized on the basis of geometric considerations.