PREPARATION AND PROPERTIES OF MOLYBDENUM-DINITROGEN AND TUNGSTEN-DINITROGEN COMPLEXES .10. CONVERSION OF LIGATING DINITROGEN INTO HYDRAZINE WITH HYDRAZIDO(1-) COMPLEXES AS INTERMEDIATES

The protonation reactions of ligating dinitrogen in molybdenum and tungsten complexes have been receiving much attention in relevance to nitrogen fixation. Previously Chatt and his co-workers2 reported that the complexes cis-[M(N2)2- (PMe2Ph)4] or irons-[M(N2)2(PPh2Me)4] (M = Mo or W) give, on treatment with sulfuric acid in methanol at room temperature and then base distillation for M = Mo, high yields of ammonia, together with a little hydrazine for M = W and a trace for M = Mo. The yield of ammonia is essentially 2 mol/metal atom for M = W, but only ~0.66 mol/metal atom for M = Mo. © 1979, American Chemical Society. All rights reserved.