Deprotonation of organic compounds bearing acid protons promoted by metal amido complexes with chiral diamine ligands leading to new organometallic compounds

Well-defined 16-electron metal amido complexes bearing chiral Ts-diamine ligands readily react with nitromethane, acetone, or phenylacetylene to give new organometallic compounds in almost quantitative yields. For example, an Ir amido complex, Cp*Ir[(R,R)Tscydn], reacts with nitromethane at room temperature to give quantitatively a nitromethyl Ir complex, Cp*Ir(CH₂NO₂)[(R,R)-Tscydn], as a single diastereomer. The isolable organometallic compounds with chiral amine ligands are relevant to active catalysts for asymmetric C-C bond formation.