The development of an efficient catalytic process that mimics the enzymatic function of alcohol dehydrogenase is critical for using biomass alcohols for both the production of H2 as a chemical energy carrier and fine chemicals under waste-free conditions. Dehydrogenation of alcohol-water mixtures into their corresponding acids with molecular hydrogen as the sole by-product from the reaction can be catalysed by a ruthenium complex with a chelating bis(olefin) diazadiene ligand. This complex, [K(dme)2][Ru(H)(trop2dad)], stores up to two equivalents of hydrogen intramolecularly, and catalyses the production of H2 from alcohols in the presence of water and a base under homogeneous conditions. The conversion of a MeOH-H2O mixture proceeds selectively to CO2/H2 gas formation under neutral conditions, thereby allowing the use of the entire hydrogen content (12% by weight). Isolation and characterization of the ruthenium complexes from these reactions suggested a mechanistic scenario in which the trop2dad ligand behaves as a chemically 'non-innocent' co-operative ligand.

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Chemists of all fields currently publish about 50 000 crystal structures per year, the vast majority of which are X‐ray structures. We determined two molecular structures by employing electron rather than X‐ray diffraction. For this purpose, an EIGER hybrid pixel detector was fitted to a transmission electron microscope, yielding an electron diffractometer. The structure of a new methylene blue derivative was determined at 0.9 Å resolution from a crystal smaller than 1×2 μm 2 . Several thousand active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) are only available as submicrocrystalline powders. To illustrate the potential of electron crystallography for the pharmaceutical industry, we also determined the structure of an API from its pill. We demonstrate that electron crystallography complements X‐ray crystallography and is the technique of choice for all unsolved cases in which submicrometer‐sized crystals were the limiting factor.

Phosphorus-containing heterocycles have evolved from laboratory curiosities to functional components, such as ligands in catalytically active metal complexes or molecular constituents in electronic devices. The straightforward synthesis of functionalized heterocycles on a larger scale remains a challenge. Herein, we report the use of the phosphaethynolate (OCP)(-) anion as a building block for various sterically unprotected and functionalized hydroxy substituted phosphorus heterocycles. Because the resulting heterocycles are themselves anions, they are building blocks in their own right and allow further facile functionalization. This property may be of interest in coordination chemistry and material science.

The terminal rhenium(I) phosphaethynolate complex [Re(PCO)(CO)(2)(triphos)] has been prepared in a salt metathesis reaction from Na(OCP) and [Re(OTf)(CO)(2)(triphos)]. The analogous isocyanato complex [Re(NCO)(CO)(2)(triphos)] has been likewise prepared for comparison. The structure of both complexes was elucidated by X-ray diffraction studies. While the isocyanato complex is linear, the phosphaethynolate complex is strongly bent around the pnictogen center. Computations including natural bond orbital (NBO) theory, natural resonance theory (NRT), and natural population analysis (NPA) indicate that the isocyanato complex can be viewed as a classic Werner-type complex, that is, with an electrostatic interaction between the Re(I) and the NCO group. The phosphaethynolate complex [Re(P=C=O)(CO)(2)(triphos)] is best described as a metallaphosphaketene with a Re(I)-phosphorus bond of highly covalent character.

Stable salts of the first homoleptic Cu-phosphorus and Cu-ethene complexes, [Cu(eta2-P4)2]+ and [Cu(eta2-C2H4)3]+, isolated by the aid of the weakly coordinating anion (WCA) [Al(OC(CF3)3)4]-, were obtained.

In this study, we investigated the tetraalkylammonium salts of the weakly coordinating fluorinated alkoxyaluminates [pftb](-) ([Al(O(C(CF(3))(3))(4)](-)), [hfip](-) ([Al(OC(H)(CF(3))(2))(4)](-)) and [hftb](-) ([Al(OC(CH(3))(CF(3))(2))(4)](-)) in order to obtain information on their undisturbed spectral and structural properties, as well as to study their electrochemical behavior (i.e., conductivities in non-polar solvents and electrochemical windows). Several of the compounds qualify as ionic liquids with melting points as low as 42 degrees C for [NBu(4)](+)[hfip](-). Simple and almost quantitative metathesis reactions yielding these materials in high purity were developed. These [NR(4)](+) salts serve as model compounds for undisturbed anions and their vibrational spectra--together with simulated spectra based on quantum chemical DFT calculations--were used for the clear assignment of the anion bands. Besides, the ion volumes of the anions (V(ion)([pftb](-)) = 0.736 nm(3), V(ion)([hftb](-)) = 0.658 nm(3), V(ion)([hfip](-)) = 0.577 nm(3)) and their decomposition pathways in the mass spectrometric measurements have been established. The salts are highly soluble in non-polar solvents (up to 1.09 mol L(-1) are possible for [NBu(4)](+)[hftb](-) in CH(2)Cl(2) and 0.41 mol L(-1) for [NBu(4)](+)[hfip](-) in CHCl(3)) and show higher molar conductivities if compared to [NBu(4)](+)[PF(6)](-). The electrochemical windows of CH(2)Cl(2), CH(3)CN and 1,2-F(2)C(6)H(4) using the [NBu(4)](+) aluminate electrolytes are up to +0.5 V/-0.7 V larger than those using the standard [NBu(4)](+)[PF(6)](-).

Very recently it was shown that the metalloid cluster compound {Ge(9)[Si(SiMe(3))(3)](3)}(-) can be used for subsequent reactions as the shielding of the cluster core is rather incomplete. Here further reactions of with M(+) sources of group 11 metals are described, leading to metalloid cluster compounds of the formula {MGe(18)[Si(SiMe(3))(3)](6)}(-) (M = Ag, Cu). These reactions can be seen as first steps into a supramolecular chemistry with metalloid cluster compounds. Beside this feature, the structural properties as well as the bonding situations in these cluster compounds are discussed.