Gutmann–Beckett method

The Gutmann–Beckett method is an experimental procedure used by chemists to assess the Lewis acidity of molecular species. Triethylphosphine oxide (Et3PO, TEPO) is used as a probe molecule and systems are evaluated by 31P NMR spectroscopy.

Gutmann (1975) used 31P NMR spectroscopy to parameterize Lewis acidity of solvents by Acceptor Numbers.[1] Beckett (1996) recognised its more generally utility and adapted the procedure so that it could be easily applied to molecular species dissolved in weakly Lewis acidic solvents.[2] The term Gutmann–Beckett method was first used in chemical literature in 2007.[3]

Prof. Dr Viktor Gutmann (1921–98) was an eminent Austrian chemist (see de:Viktor Gutmann) renowned for his work on non-aqueous solvents. Prof. Michael A. Beckett is Head of the School of Chemistry at Bangor University, UK.

Application to boranes

Interaction of triethylphosphine oxide with a Lewis acid

The 31P chemical shift (δ) of Et3PO is sensitive to chemical environment but can usually be found between +40 and +100 ppm. The O atom in Et3PO is a Lewis base, and its interaction with Lewis acid sites causes deshielding of the adjacent P atom. Gutmann described an Acceptor Number (AN) scale for solvent Lewis acidity [4] with two reference points relating to the 31P NMR chemical shift of Et3PO in the weakly Lewis acidic solvent hexane (δ = 41.0 ppm, AN 0) and in the strongly Lewis acidic solvent SbCl5 (δ = 86.1 ppm, AN 100). Acceptor numbers can be calculated from AN = 2.21 x (δsample – 41.0) and higher AN values indicate greater Lewis acidity. Boron trihalides are archetypal Lewis acids and have the following AN values: BF3 (89) < BCl3 (106) < BBr3 (109) < BI3 (115).[2] The Lewis acidity of other molecules can be obtained in weakly Lewis acidic solvents by 31P NMR measurements of their Et3PO adducts.[5] The Gutmann–Beckett method has been applied to Lewis acids derived fluoroarylboranes [5][6] such as B(C6F5)3 (AN 82), and borenium cations, and its application to boron compounds in general has been reviewed.[7]

Application to other compounds

The Gutmann–Beckett method has been successfully applied to main group compounds [5][8][9][10][11] (e.g. AlCl3, AN 87; silylium cations; [E(bipy)2]3+ (E = P, As, Sb, Bi) cations; cationic 4 coordinate Pv and Sbv derivatives) and transition-metal compounds [5][12] (e.g. TiCl4, AN 70) which display Lewis acidic properties.

References

  1. U. Mayer, V. Gutmann, and W. Gerger, "The acceptor number – a quantitative empirical parameter for the electrophilic properties of solvents", Monatshefte fur Chemie, 1975, 106, 1235–1257. doi: 10.1007/BF00913599
  2. 1 2 M.A. Beckett, G.C. Strickland, J.R. Holland, and K.S. Varma, "A convenient NMR method for the measurement of Lewis acidity at boron centres: correlation of reaction rates of Lewis acid initiated epoxide polymerizations with Lewis acidity", Polymer, 1996, 37, 4629–4631. doi: 10.1016/0032-3861(96)00323-0
  3. G.C. Welch, L.Cabrera, P.A. Chase, E. Hollink, J.M. Masuda, P. Wei, and D.W. Stephan,"Tuning Lewis acidity using the reactivity of "frustrated Lewis pairs": facile formation of phosphine-boranes and cationic phosphonium-boranes", Dalton Trans., 2007, 3407–3414. doi: 10.1039/b704417h
  4. V. Gutmann, "Solvent effects on reactivities of organometallic compounds", Coord. Chem. Rev., 1976, 18, 225–255. doi: 10.1016/S0010-8545(00)82045-7
  5. 1 2 3 4 M.A. Beckett, D.S. Brassington, S.J. Coles, and M.B. Hursthouse, "Lewis acidity of tris(pentafluorophenyl)borane: crystal and molecular structure of B(C6F5)3.OPEt3", Inorg. Chem. Commun., 2000, 3, 530–533. doi: 10.1016/S1387-7003(00)00129-5
  6. S.C. Binding, H. Zaher, F.M. Chadwick, and D. O'Hare, "Heterolytic activation of hydrogen using frustrated Lewis pairs containing tris(2,2',2'-perfluorobiphenyl)borane", Dalton Trans., 2012, 41, 9061–9066. doi: 10.1039/c2dt30334e
  7. B. Sivaev, V.L. Bregadze, “Lewis acidity of boron compounds”, Coord. Chem. Rev., 2014, 270/271, 75-88. doi: 10.1016/j.ccr2013.10.017
  8. H. Grossekappenberg, M. Reissmann, M. Schmidtmann, and T. Mueller, “Quantitative assessment of the Lewis acidity of silylium ions”, Organometallics, 2015, 34, 4952-4958. doi: 10.1021/acs.organomet.5b00556
  9. S.S. Chitnis, A.P.M. Robertson, N. Burford, B.O. Patrick, R. McDonald, and M.J. Ferguson, “Bipyridine complexes of E3+ (E = P, As, Sb, Bi): strong Lewis acids, sources of E(OTf)3 and synthons for EI and Ev cations”, Chemical Sciences, 2015, 6, 6545-6555. doi: 10.1039/C5SC02423D
  10. J.M. Bayne and D.W. Stephan, “Phosphorus Lewis acids: emerging reactivity and applications in catalysis”, Chem. Soc. Rev., 2015, 45, 765-774. doi:10.1039/c5cs00516g
  11. B. Pan and F. Gabbai, “[Sb(C6H5)4][B(C6F5)4]: an air stable Lewis acidic stibonium salt that activates strong element-fluorine bonds”, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2014, 136, 9564-9567. doi: 10.1021/ja505214m
  12. C.-Y. Wu, T. Horibe, C.B. Jacobsen, and D. Toste, “Stable gold(III) catalysts by oxidative addition of a carbon-carbon bond”, Nature, 2015, 517, 449-454. doi: 10.1038/nature14104
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