Chiral spirobiindane skeleton compound and preparation method thereof is disclosed in the present invention. The spirobiindane skeleton compound of the present invention having the structure formula of I or I′; the preparation method for synthesizing the spirobiindane skeleton compound of the present invention comprising the following steps: in the presence of solvent and catalysts, the structure formula compound III reacted through intramolecular Friedel-Crafts reaction to obtain the compound of formula I; the catalyst is a Browsteric acidor Lewis acid. The preparation method of chiral fused spirobiindane skeleton compound of the present invention does not need to adopt chiral starting materials or chiral resolving agents, does not require chiral resolving steps, is simple in method, is simple in post-treatment, and is economic and environment friendly. High product yield, high product optical purity and chemical purity. The catalyst for the asymmetric reaction is obtained from the chiral spirobiindane skeleton ligand of the present invention, under the catalytic reagent of transition metal, the catalyzed hydrogenation reaction can arrive at a remarkable catalytic effect with a product yield of >99%, and a product ee value of up to >99%. ##STR00001##

A zinc-based metal organic framework and method of making is described. The zinc-based metal organic framework is in the form of an interpenetrating diamondoid framework where each Zn.sup.2+ ion center is linked with four other Zn.sup.2+ ion centers in a distorted tetrahedral geometry. The linking occurs through diamine and dicarboxylic acid linkers. The zinc-based metal organic framework may be deposited on a transparent conducting film and used as a photoelectrode for photoelectrochemical water splitting.

The present invention provides unimolecular metal complexes having increased activity in the copolymerization of carbon dioxide and epoxides. Also provided are methods of using such metal complexes in the synthesis of polymers. According to one aspect, the present invention provides metal complexes comprising an activating species with catalytic activity tethered to a ligand that is coordinated to the active metal center of the complex.

This invention relates to supported catalyst compositions of transition metal complexes of a dianionic, tridentate ligand that features a central neutral heterocyclic Lewis base and two phenolate donors, where the tridentate ligand coordinates to the metal center to form two eight-membered rings. Preferably the bis(phenolate) complexes are represented by Formula (I): ##STR00001##
where M, L, X, m, n, E, E′, Q, R.sup.1, R.sup.2, R.sup.3, R.sup.4, R.sup.1′, R.sup.2′, R.sup.3′, R.sup.4′, A.sup.1, A.sup.1′, A.sup.3A.sup.2, and A.sup.2′A.sup.3′ are as defined herein, where A.sup.1QA.sup.1′ are part of a heterocyclic Lewis base containing 4 to 40 non-hydrogen atoms that links A.sup.2 to A.sup.2′ via a 3-atom bridge with Q being the central atom of the 3-atom bridge.

The present invention relates to a preparation method for and an application of a chiral spirocyclic phosphine-nitrogen-phosphine tridentate ligand SpiroPNP and an iridium catalyst Ir-SpiroPNP thereof. The chiral spirocyclic phosphine-nitrogen-phosphine tridentate ligand is a compound represented by formula I, or a racemate or optical isomer thereof, or a catalytically acceptable salt thereof, and the main structural feature is a phosphine ligand having a chiral spiro indene skeleton and a large sterically hindered substituent. The chiral spirocyclic phosphine-nitrogen-phosphine tridentate ligand can be synthesized into a chiral starting material from a 7-diaryl/alkylphosphino-7′-amino-1,1′-spirodihydroindenyl compound having a spiro ring skeleton. The iridium catalyst of the chiral spirocyclic phosphino-7′-amino-1,1′-spirodihydroindenyl compound having a sprio ring skeleton. The iridium catalyst of the chiral spirocyclic phosphine-nitrogen-phosphine tridentate ligand is a compound represented by formula II, or a racemate or optical isomer thereof, or a catalytically acceptable salt thereof. The iridium catalyst can be used to catalyze the asymmetric catalytic hydrogenation of carbonyl compounds, and especially in the asymmetric catalytic hydrogenation of simple dialkyl ketones. Said catalyst exhibits high yield (>99%) and enantioselectivity (up to 99.8% ee), thus having practical value.

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A new family of mononuclear organometallic complexes of a divalent metal bound to sequential tetradentate monoanionic {ONNN}-type ligands, and polymerization of cyclic esters such as lactides utilizing same are provided. Novel tetradentate monoanionic {ONNN}-type ligands usable for forming these complexes are also provided.

The synthesis and structure of beta-diketiminate manganese compounds are described, as well as their use as catalysts for the hydrosilylation and hydroboration of unsaturated organic compounds and main group element-main group element bond formation via dehydrogenative coupling.

A process to produce a branched ethylene-α-olefin diene elastomer comprising combining a catalyst precursor and an activator with a feed comprising ethylene, C3 to C12 α-olefins, and a dual-polymerizable diene to obtain a branched ethylene-α-olefin diene elastomer; where the catalyst precursor is selected from pyridyldiamide and quinolinyldiamido transition metal complexes. The branched ethylene-α-olefin diene elastomer may comprise within a range from 40 to 80 wt % of ethylene-derived units by weight of the branched ethylene-α-olefin diene elastomer, and 0.1 to 2 wt % of singly-polymerizable diene derived units, 0.1 to 2 wt % of singly-polymerizable diene derived units, and the remainder comprising C3 to C12 α-olefin derived units, wherein the branched ethylene-α-olefin diene elastomer has a weight average molecular weight (M.sub.w) within a range from 100 kg/mole to 300 kg/mole, an average branching index (g′.sub.avgg) of 0.9 or more, and a branching index at very high M.sub.w (g′.sub.1000) of less than 0.9.

The invention discloses a tetramethyl-7,7′-spirobiindane-based phosphinooxazoline ligand compound and its preparation method and use. The phosphinooxazoline ligand compound is a compound having a structure shown in general formula I or an enantiomer, a raceme or a diastereoisomer thereof. The phosphinooxazoline ligand obtained through a series of reaction steps using cheap and easily available 3,3,3′,3′-tetramethyl-1,1′-spirobiindane-6,6′-diol as a starting material. The novel phosphinooxazoline ligand developed in the invention can be used to organic catalytic reactions, especially as a chiral phosphinooxazoline ligand widely used in metal-asymmetric catalytic reactions, having economical practicality and industrial application prospects. ##STR00001##

The electrochemical carbon dioxide reduction reaction (CO.sub.2RR) provides opportunities to synthesize value-added products from this greenhouse gas in a sustainable manner. Efficient catalysts for this reaction are provided that selectively drive CO.sub.2 reduction over the thermodynamic and kinetically competitive hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in organic or aqueous electrolytes. The catalysts are metal-polypyridyl coordination complexes of a redox non-innocent terpyridine-based pentapyridine ligand and a first-row transition metal. The metal-ligand cooperativity in [Fe(tpyPY2Me)].sup.2+ drives the electrochemical reduction of CO.sub.2 to CO at low overpotentials with high selectivity for CO.sub.2RR (>90%).