A new
method to install a proton relay that enhances
the reactivity
near an active catalytic site for H2 production is reported,
afforded by the electrochemical reduction and protonation of one of
the ligands in the paddlewheel Rh2(II,II) hydrogen evolution
complex, cis-[Rh2(DPhF)2(bncn)2]2+ (Rh-bncn; DPhF = N,N′-diphenylformamidinate, bncn = benzo[c]cinnoline). An electrochemical reversible prewave is observed for Rh-bncn at potentials more positive than the first bncn-centered
reduction couple in the presence of strong acids, observed at −0.72
V vs Fc+/0 (Fc = ferrocene) in the cyclic voltammograms
(CVs) in DMF (0.1 M TBAPF6). The origin of this prewave
is shown to arise from a precatalytic transformation that originates
from a concerted proton–electron transfer (CPET) event occurring
at one of the bridging bncn ligands. Through electrochemical analysis,
CV simulations, and electronic structure calculations, a reaction
mechanism is elucidated. In this system, the electrochemically formed
N–H bond on the reduced bncn ligand serves as a proton relay
in the H2 formation reaction through a cooperative interligand
pathway involving one of the bridging DPhF ligands after a second
reduction step, accessible at approximately −1.15 V vs Fc+/0. Since calculations show that hydrogen evolution takes
place at the bridging ligands and does not involve the dirhodium core,
it is predicted that more abundant metal centers can be incorporated
into this ligand scaffold, leading to new candidates for electrocatalytic
hydrogen reduction. As such, this work delineates a new design strategy
to incorporate proton relays in molecular bimetallic hydrogen evolution
electrocatalysts to achieve higher efficiency.