Pentacarbonylchromium-solvent complexes : Flash-spectroscopic determination of rate constants of formation and of stability constants and their application as solvent parameters to catalytic butadiene oligomerisation

Abstract The rates of reaction of Cr(CO) 5 with several solvents L(L = acetone, acetonitrile, benzene, diethyl ether, ethyl acetate and methanol) and of the decay of the Cr(CO) 5 L in CO-saturated cyclohexane solutions have been measured by both conventional and laser flash photolysis. The rate constants for formation and the stability constants of Cr(CO) 5 L have been deduced, and both sets of values are suggested as possible solvent parameters for organometallic reactions [e.g. for the catalytic oligomerisation of butadiene by dibutadieneiron monocarbonyl].