Studying Lewis acidity of boron Lewis acids in frustrated Lewis pairs using XRS

Lewis acidic boron compounds are promising catalysts, less expensive and less toxic than transition metal compounds, with rapidly developing scope of applications. However, understanding, quantifying and predicting their Lewis acidity is challenging, which hinders rational design of future catalysts. XRS offers a unique opportunity for direct comparison of the electronic structure for neat boron Lewis acids irrespective of their physical state: crystal, molecular liquid, ionic liquid (molten salt), as well as solution, without the need for vacuum experimental conditions or vast quantities of sample. Here, we propose the first study of frustrated Lewis pairs by XRS, to elucidate the influence of base on the electronic state of boron, across various environments.