Coordination chemistry of Re complexes with 2(2′-pyridyl)benzimidazole

Two new Re(III) and Re(IV) complexes with 2(2′-pyridyl)benzimidazole (pbimz) were prepared and their crystal and molecular structures established by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Reaction of [ReOCl2(OEt)(PPh3)2] with the ligand gave red cis(Cl),trans(P)-[ReCl2(PPh3)2(pbimz)]Cl (1), while red [ReCl4(pbimz)] · OPPh3 (2) was obtained from [ReCl3(PhC(O)C(O)Ph)(PPh3)] and pbimz in the presence of perchlorate. The compounds were characterized by elemental analysis, FAB-MS, UV–Vis, IR, NMR spectroscopy and magnetic susceptibility measurements.