Catalysts include nanoparticles of catalytic metal and cellulose or cellulose derivatives. The catalysts are used in electroless metal plating. The catalysts are free of tin.

Described herein is the fusion of two families of unique carbon-containing molecules that readily disregard the tendency of carbon to form four chemical bonds, namely N-heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs) and carborane anions. Deprotonation of an anionic imidazolium salt with lithium diisopropylamide at room temperature leads to a mixture of lithium complexes of C-2 and C-5 dianionic NHC constitutional isomers as well as a trianionic (C-2, C-5) adduct. Judicious choice of the base and reaction conditions allows for the selective formation of all three stable polyanionic carbenes. In solution, the so-called abnormal C-5 NHC lithium complex slowly isomerizes to the normal C-2 NHC, and the process can be proton catalyzed by the addition of the anionic imidazolium salt. These results indicate that the combination of two unusual forms of carbon atoms can lead to unexpected chemical behavior, and that this strategy paves the way for the development of a broad new generation of NHC ligands for catalysis.

An efficient method for the preparation of backbone-substituted imidazolinium salts for use as N-heterocyclic carbene ligands, e.g., for organometallic catalysts is provided. These functionalized N-heterocyclic carbene ligands are used to prepare solid-supported catalysts, e.g., for olefin metathesis.

Pyrazine derivatives which contain one or more electron donating groups on the ring are used as catalytic metal complexing agents in aqueous alkaline environments to catalyze electroless metal plating on metal clad and un-clad substrates. The catalysts are monomers and free of tin and antioxidants.

A composition contains (A) a hydrosilylation reaction catalyst and (B) an aliphatically unsaturated compound having an average, per molecule, of one or more aliphatically unsaturated organic groups capable of undergoing hydrosilylation reaction. The composition is capable of reacting via hydrosilylation reaction to form a reaction product, such as a silane, a gum, a gel, a rubber, or a resin. Ingredient (A) contains a metal-ligand complex that can be prepared by a method including reacting a metal precursor and a ligand.

A process can be used for preparing cyclic carbonates with an exocyclic vinylidene group by reacting a propargylic alcohol with CO.sub.2 in the presence of a silver catalyst having at least one bulky ligand a lipophilic carboxylate ligand. After completion of the reaction, the catalyst is separated from the cyclic carbonate by the use of two organic solvents of different polarity and having a miscibility gap. The silver catalyst is enriched in the less polar solvent and the cyclic carbonate in the more polar solvent.