Copper(I) halide complexes from cis-1,2-bis(diphenylphosphino) ethylene and some heterocyclic thiones

Reaction of copper(I) chloride or bromide with equimolar amounts of the diphos ligand cis-1,2-bis(diphenylphosphino)ethylene (dppet) and a heterocyclic thione (L) in acetonitrile/methanol solvent afforded mononuclear complexes of the type [CuX(dppet)(L)] with the diphosphine ligand acting as a chelating ligand. However, the same reaction carried out at higher temperatures proceeds, in some cases, with exclusion of the phosphine ligand from the coordination sphere leading to double-S-bridged dimers. In contrast, copper(I) iodide under the same conditions gave the thione-free dimeric compound [CuI(dppet)]2 which contains double-bridging iodine atoms. A notable exception was for the reaction with 5-methyl-1,3,4-thiadiazole-2-thione (mtdztH) which, under the same conditions, gave rise to the unexpected, simultaneous formation of the monomer [CuI(dppet)(CH3CN)] as well as the above mentioned dimeric [CuI(dppet)]2. Furthermore treatment [CuX(dppet)(L)] with two equivalents of triphenylphosphine was found to cause replacement of the diphos ligand, while substitution of the chlorine atom under HCl elimination and formation of [Cu(dppet)(mftztH)2] occured in the unique case of treating [CuCl(dppet)(mftztH)] with one additional equivalent of the same thione ligand. The structures of one representative for each of the above mentioned types of complexes, namely [CuBr(dppet)(mftztH)], [Cu(dppet)(mftztH)2], [Cu(μ-I)(dppet)]2 · [CuI(dppet)(CH3CN)] and [CuBr{μ-S(pymtH)}(pymtH)]2 have been established by single-crystal X-ray diffraction.