Mechanism of N-h bond cleavage of aniline by a dearomatized PNP-pincer type phosphaalkene complex of Iridium(I)

Detailed mechanistic investigations using kinetic and theoretical methods have been conducted for deprotonative N-H bond cleavage of p-YC ₆H₄NH₂ (Y = H, MeO, Me, Cl, Br, NO₂) by [K(18-crown-6)][Ir(Cl)(PPEP*)] (1a) bearing a dearomatized PNP-pincer type phosphaalkene ligand (PPEP*) to afford [Ir(NHC₆H ₄Y)(PPEP)] (2) with an aromatized ligand (PPEP). While 1a is in equilibrium with [K(18-crown-6)]Cl (3) and [Ir(PPEP*)] (4) in solution, the N-H bond cleavage proceeds via association of 1a with aniline, where the coordination of aniline to iridium is insignificant; instead, aniline is associated with PPEP* by hydrogen bonding. In contrast, the N-H bond cleavage of ammonia proceeds via the pentacoordinate intermediate [Ir(Cl)(NH₃)(PPEP*)]. The difference between the N-H bond cleavage processes of aniline and ammonia is examined by DFT calculations.