Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 28, 2026

Synthesis and Performance Characterizations of Transition Metal Single Atom Catalyst for Electrochemical CO2 Reduction
Published on: April 10, 2018
Formation of a reversible, intramolecular main-group metal-CO2 adduct
Diane A Dickie1, Eric N Coker, Richard A Kemp
1Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87131, United States.
Abstract:
The P,P-chelated stannylene [(i-Pr(2)P)(2)N](2)Sn takes up 2 equiv of carbon dioxide (CO(2)) to form an unusual product in which CO(2) binds to the Sn and P atoms, thus forming a six-membered ring complex. Gentle heating of the solid product releases CO(2), indicating that CO(2) is bound as an adduct to the main-group complex. The groups bound to the CO(2) fragment are not particularly sterically crowded or highly acidic, thus indicating that "frustrated" Lewis acid-base pairs are not required in the binding of CO(2) to main-group elements.
Related Concept Videos
Properties of Organometallic Compounds
Metal-Ligand Bonds
In these complexes, transition metals form coordinate covalent bonds, a kind of Lewis acid-base interaction in which both of the electrons in the bond are contributed by a donor (Lewis base) to an electron acceptor (Lewis acid). The Lewis acid in...
Formation of Complex Ions
Coordination Compounds and Nomenclature
Ionic Bonding and Electron Transfer
Complexation Equilibria: Factors Influencing Stability of Complexes

