π-Coordinating ligands are commonly found in intermediate structures in homogeneous catalysis, and are gaining interest as supporting ligands for the development of cooperative catalysts. Herein, we systematically investigate the binding of the ketone group, a strongly accepting π ligand, to mid-to-late metals of the first transition series. To this end, the coordination of 2,2'-bis(diphenylphosphino)benzophenone ( dpbp), which features a ketone moiety flanked by two strongly binding P-donor groups, to Fe, Co, Ni, and Cu was explored. The ketone moiety does not bind to the metal in M complexes, whereas M complexes (Fe, Co, Ni) adopt an η (C,O) coordination. A structural and computational investigation of periodic trends in this series was performed. These data suggest that the coordination of the ketone to M can mostly be described by the resonance extremes of the Dewar-Chatt-Duncanson model, that is, the π complex and the metallaoxacycle extreme, with a possible minor contribution from a ketyl radical resonance structure in the case of the iron complex.

The hydrosilylation of unsaturated compounds homogeneously catalyzed by cobalt complexes has gained considerable attention in the last years, aiming at substituting precious metal‐based catalysts. In this study, the catalytic activity of well‐characterized CoII and CoI complexes of the pToldpbp ligand is demonstrated in the hydrosilylation of 1‐octene with phenylsilane. The CoI complex is the better precatalyst for the mentioned reaction under mild conditions, at 1 mol‐% catalyst, 1 h, room temperature, and without solvent, yielding 84 % of octylphenylsilane. Investigation of the substrate scope shows lower performance of the catalyst in styrene hydrosilylation, but excellent results with allylbenzene (84 %) and acetophenone (> 99 %). This catalytic study contributes to the field of cobalt‐catalyzed hydrosilylation reactions and shows the first example of catalysis employing the dpbp ligand in combination with a base metal.