Syntheses, characterizations, and single-crystal X-ray structures of soluble titanium alkoxide phosphonates

Reactions of Ti(OiPr)4 with different phosphonic acids RPO3H2 (R = Ph, 4-CNPh, Me, tBu) in organic solvents have been investigated. In the presence of small amounts of water, the new molecular titanium oxide alkoxide phosphonates [Ti4(mu 3-O)(OiPr)5(mu-OiPr)3(RPO3)3].DMSO [R = Ph (1), Me (2), tBu (3), 4-CNPh (4)] were isolated. The single-crystal X-ray structure analyses of 1 and 2 revealed hexacoordinated titanium atoms and a connectivity of (111) for each phosphonate. Under rigorous exclusion of water, the reaction of Ti(OiPr)4 with tert-butylphosphonic acid in toluene gave the titanium phosphonate tetramer [Ti(OiPr)2(tBuPO3)]4 (5). A single-crystal X-ray structure analysis of 5 revealed a 5 + 1 coordination of the titanium atoms as a result of the (112) connectivity of each phosphonate; such a coordination mode has never been reported for a titanium phosphate, phosphonate, or phosphinate. Compounds 1-5 were characterized by FT-IR, 31P MAS NMR, and solution multinuclear NMR (1H, 13C(1H,) 31P(1H)) spectroscopies. 13C CP MAS NMR experiments were carried out on arylphosphonates 1 and 4. Solution NMR experiments were also used to investigate the exchange reaction between 1 and 2 and the conversion of 5 to [Ti4(mu 3-O)(OiPr)5(mu-OiPr)3(tBuPO3)3].iPrOH by partial hydrolysis in the presence of Ti(OiPr)4. The phosphonate clusters 1-5 are soluble in organic solvents and are likely intermediates in the sol-gel processing of inorganic-organic hybrids based on titanium oxide and phosphonate groups that we are currently developing.