From Missing Links to New Records: A Series of Novel Polychlorine Anions

Abstract

Herein we report the synthesis and structural characterization of four novel polychloride compounds. The compounds [CCl(NMe2)2][Cl(Cl2)3] and [NPr4][Cl(Cl2)4] have been obtained from the reaction of the corresponding chloride salts with elemental chlorine at low temperature. They are the missing links in the series of polychloride monoanions [Cl(Cl)n]− (n=1–6). Additionally, the reaction of decamethylferrocene with elemental chlorine was studied yielding [Cp*2Fe]2[Cl20], which contains the largest known polychloride [Cl20]2− to date, and [Cp*2Fe][Cl(Cl2)4(HF)], which is the first example of a polychloride‐HF network stabilized by strong hydrogen and halogen bonding. All compounds have been characterized by single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy and quantum‐chemical calculations.