Synthesis of Ln(III) chloride tetraphenylporphyrin complexes

The isolation and identification of the first examples of anhydrous lanthanide chloride tetraphenylporphyrin complexes have been described. The purple complexes were generated by the reaction of dilithiotetraphenylporphyrin bis(dimethoxyethane) with lanthanide trichloride tris(tetrahydrofuran) salts to yield the products in up to 85% yield. The crystal structures for the holmium and ytterbium complexes are also presented.