Microwave Synthesis, Spectral, Thermal and Antimicrobial Activities of Some Transition Metal Complexes Involving 2-Amino-6-nitrobenzothiazole Moiety

Microwave-Assisted Synthesis: Can Transition Metal Complexes Take Advantage of This “Green” Method?

Microwave-assisted synthesis is considered environmental-friendly and, therefore, in agreement with the principles of green chemistry. This form of energy has been employed extensively and successfully in organic synthesis also in the case of metal-catalyzed synthetic procedures. However, it has been less widely exploited in the synthesis of metal complexes. As microwave irradiation has been proving its utility as both a time-saving procedure and an alternative way to carry on tricky transformations, its use can help inorganic chemists, too. This review focuses on the use of microwave irradiation in the preparation of transition metal complexes and organometallic compounds and also includes new, unpublished results. The syntheses of the compounds are described following the group of the periodic table to which the contained metal belongs. A general overview of the results from over 150 papers points out that microwaves can be a useful synthetic tool for inorganic chemists, reducing dramatically the reaction times with respect to traditional heating. This is often accompanied by a more limited risk of decomposition of reagents or products by an increase in yield, purity, and (sometimes) selectivity. In any case, thermal control is operative, whereas nonthermal or specific microwave effects seem to be absent.

Alternative Technologies That Facilitate Access to Discrete Metal Complexes

Organometallic complexes: these two words jump to the mind of the chemist and are directly associated with their utility in catalysis or as a pharmaceutical. Nevertheless, to be able to use them, it is necessary to synthesize them, and it is not always a small matter. Typically, synthesis is via solution chemistry, using a round-bottom flask and a magnetic or mechanical stirrer. This review takes stock of alternative technologies currently available in laboratories that facilitate the synthesis of such complexes. We highlight five such technologies: mechanochemistry, also known as solvent-free chemistry, uses a mortar and pestle or a ball mill; microwave activation can drastically reduce reaction times; ultrasonic activation promotes chemical reactions because of cavitation phenomena; photochemistry, which uses light radiation to initiate reactions; and continuous flow chemistry, which is increasingly used to simplify scale-up. While facilitating the synthesis of organometallic compounds, these enabling technologies also allow access to compounds that cannot be obtained in any other way. This shows how the paradigm is changing and evolving toward new technologies, without necessarily abandoning the round-bottom flask. A bright future is ahead of the organometallic chemist, thanks to these novel technologies.

Theoretical and experimental studies on three new coordination complexes of Co(II), Ni(II), and Cu(II) with 2,4-dichloro-6-{(E)-[(5-chloro-2 sulfanylphenyl)imino]methyl}phenol Schiff base ligand

Three mononuclear coordination complexes of Co(II), Ni(II), and Cu(II) have been synthesized from 2,4-dichloro-6-{(E)-[(5-chloro-2-sulfanylphenyl)imino]methyl}phenol ligand (H 2 L) obtained by simple condensation reaction of 3,5-dichloro-2-hydroxybenzaldehyde and 2-amino-4-chlorobenzenethiol and characterized by elemental analysis, spectral (FT-IR, electronic, and (1)H-NMR), molar conductance, thermal, SEM, PXRD, and fluorescence studies. The PXRD analysis and SEM-EDX micrographs show the crystalline nature of complexes. The domain size and the lattice strain of synthesized compounds have been determined according to Williamson-Hall plot. TG of the synthesized complexes illustrates the general decomposition pattern of the complexes. The ligand exhibits an interesting fluorescence property which is suppressed after complex formation. The Co(II) complex adopted a distorted octahedral configuration while Ni(II) and Cu(II) complexes showed square planar geometry around metal center. The geometry optimization, HOMO-LUMO, molecular electrostatic potential map (MEP), and spin density of synthesized compounds have been performed by density functional theory (DFT) method using B3LYP/6-31G and B3LYP/LANL2DZ as basis set. Graphical abstract Three new coordination complexes of Co(II), Ni(II) and Cu(II) with 2,4-dichloro-6-{(E)-[(5-chloro-2 sulfanylphenyl)imino]methyl}phenol Schiff base ligand.