CR(CO)5(CNCN), A COMPLEX IN WHICH THE COORDINATED CN GROUP OF ISOCYANOGEN BINDS AND VIBRATES LIKE A CO LIGAND

The IR and Raman spectra have been determined of the products formed by low-temperature (-20°C) replacement of 2-MeTHF (2-methyltetrahydrofuran) in photochemically produced Cr(CO)5(2-MeTHF) by isocyanogen, CNCN. The IR spectra are interpreted in terms of the formation of an isonitrile and a nitrile complex, Cr(CO)5(CNCN) and Cr(CO)5(NCNC). A detailed study of the IR and Raman spectra of Cr(CO)5(CNCN), which was formed in large excess, reveals that the coordinating CN group of CNCN has coordinating and vibrational properties almost identical to those of the CO ligands in this complex. © 1990.