The first trimetallic lithium-sodium-potassium complex : Synthesis and crystal structure of a twelve-vertex Li2Na2K2N4O2 cage molecule containing an amide-alkoxide combination

Mackenzie, F.M. and Mulvey, Robert and Clegg, W. and Horsburgh, Lynne (1996) The first trimetallic lithium-sodium-potassium complex : Synthesis and crystal structure of a twelve-vertex Li2Na2K2N4O2 cage molecule containing an amide-alkoxide combination. Journal of the American Chemical Society, 118 (19). pp. 4721-4722. ISSN 0002-7863 (https://doi.org/10.1021/ja960327t)

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Abstract

Several molecular complexes containing a mixture of two alkali metals (e.g., lithium−sodium and lithium−potassium) have been characterised by X-ray crystallographic studies over the past decade.1 Here, in this paper, we break new ground in this important area of intermetallic chemistry by reporting the successful synthesis and X-ray crystallographic characterization of an unprecedented trimetallic (lithium−sodium−potassium) formulation. Furthermore, the new complex, [{[PhN(H)]2(t-BuO)LiNaK·(TMEDA)2}2], (1), is closely related to the cocompositions currently employed as “superbases”,2 reagents of boosted deprotonating ability, in organic synthesis. Two recently reported crystal structures regarded to be architectural models for superbases, a carbanion−alkoxide3a and a carbanion−amide3b combination, both contain their two anionic functionalities (C-/RO- and C-/R2N-, respectively) within one ligand. On the other hand, more realistically, 1 contains two distinct types of anionic ligand [amide−alkoxide (R2N-/RO-)]4 as is the case in superbase reagents.2