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The rational control of the electrochemical properties of polyoxovanadate-alkoxide clusters is dependent on understanding the influence of various synthetic modifications on the overall redox processes of these systems. In this work, the electronic consequences of ligand substitution at the heteroion in a heterometal-functionalized cluster was examined. The redox properties of [V5 O6 (OCH3 )12 FeCl] (1-[V5 FeCl]) and [V5 O6 (OCH3 )12 Fe]X (2-[V5 Fe]X; X=ClO4 , OTf) were compared in order to assess the effects of changing the coordination environment around the iron center on the electrochemical properties of the cluster. Coordination of a chloride anion to iron leads to an anodic shift in redox events. Theoretical modelling of the electronic structure of these heterometal-functionalized clusters reveals that differences in the redox profiles of 1-[V5 FeCl] and 2-[V5 Fe]X arise from changes in the number of ligands surrounding the iron center (e.g., 6-coordinate vs. 5-coordinate). Specifically, binding of the chloride to the sixth coordination site appears to change the orbital interaction between the iron and the delocalized electronic structure of the mixed-valent polyoxovanadate core. Tuning the heterometal coordination environment can therefore be used to modulate the redox properties of the whole cluster.

We report a rare example of oxygen atom transfer (OAT) from a polyoxometalate cluster to a series of tertiary phosphanes. Addition of PR3 (PR3 = PMe3, PMe2Ph, PMePh2, PPh3) to a neutral methoxide-bridged polyoxovanadate-alkoxide (POV-alkoxide) cluster, [V6O7(OMe)12]0, results in isolation of a reduced structure with phosphine oxide datively coordinated to a site-differentiated VIII ion. A positive correlation between the steric and electronic properties of the phosphane and the reaction rate was observed. Further investigation of the steric influence of the alkoxy-bridged clusters on OAT was probed through the use of POV clusters with bridging alkoxide ligands of varying chain length ([V6O7(OR')12]; R' = Et, n Pr). These investigations expose that steric hinderance of the vanadyl moieties has significant influence on the rate of OAT. Finally, we report the reactivity of the reduced POV-alkoxide clusters with styrene oxide, resulting in the deoxygenation of the substrate to generate styrene. This result is the first example of epoxide deoxygenation using homometallic polyoxometalate clusters, demonstrating the potential for mono-vacant Lindqvist clusters to catalyze the removal of oxygen atoms from organic substrates.

Early‐stage cost evaluation during catalyst development holds the potential to accelerate the commercialization and deployment of advanced catalytic materials for sustainable chemical processes. The modeling and assessment of manufacturing costs as early as the laboratory synthesis scale, for example, focusing on materials costs and synthesis performance metrics, can support the development of an experimental–economic feedback loop that enables rapid insight into cost drivers associated with catalyst synthesis and highlights areas that require focused research and development effort. Ultimately, this feedback loop supports the realization of an economic understanding of the overall synthetic process and highlights opportunities to reduce costs, serving as the foundation for the scale‐up of catalyst manufacturing. Herein, a case study is presented utilizing CatCost, a free and publicly available estimation tool for the evaluation of catalyst manufacturing costs, to perform a cost‐responsive optimization of the synthesis of nickel nanoparticles (Ni NPs). It is demonstrated that reagent substitutions with more cost‐effective analogs, coupled with stoichiometric optimization, afford a 58% reduction in raw materials cost without changing the product yield or properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report the activation of nitrogen-containing oxyanions using an oxygen-deficient polyoxovanadate–alkoxide cluster. Reduction of NO21− and NO31− results in near-quantitative oxygen atom transfer to the coordinatively unsaturated VIII ion, and selective formation of NO. These results provide insight into possible mechanisms of oxyanion reduction by polyoxometalates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Herein we report the use of manganese(II) chloride for the catalytic generation of C(sp²)-C(sp³) bonds via Kumada cross-coupling. Rapid and selective formation of 2-alkylated N-heterocyclic complexes were observed in high yields with use of 3 mol% MnCl2THF1.6 and under ambient reaction conditions (21 °C, 15 min to 20 h). Manganese-catalyzed cross-coupling is tolerant toward both electron-donating and electron-withdrawing functional groups in the 5-position of the pyridine ring, with the latter resulting in an increased reaction rate and a decrease in the amount of nucleophile required. The use of this biologically and environmentally benign metal salt as a catalyst for C-C bond formation highlights its potential as a catalyst for the late-stage functionalization of pharmaceutically active N-heterocyclic molecules (e.g., pyridine, pyrazine). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]