Effect of π-accepting substituent on the reactivity and spectroscopic characteristics of triarylbismuthanes and triarylbismuth dihalides

Competitive chlorination of p-substituted triarylbismuthanes 1 [(p-XC6H4)3Bi; a: X = OMe, c: Cl, d: CO2Et, e: CF3, f: CN, g: NO2] and trimesitylbismuthane (2,4,6-Me3C6H2)3Bi 1h by sulfuryl chloride was carried out against 1b (X = H) and the effect of these substituents on the formation of triarylbismuth dichlorides 2 was studied. The relative ratios 2/2b decreased with increasing electron-withdrawing ability of the substituents (2a/2b = 53/47, 2c/2b = 33/67, 2d/2b = 35/65, 2e/2b = 29/71, 2f/2b = 16/84, 2g/2b = 0/100, 2h/2b = 46/54), indicating a lowering of reactivity of the lone pair on the bismuth atom. Pd-Catalyzed degradation of 2a–g and their difluorides 3 giving biaryls 4 was promoted by the electron-withdrawing p-substituents in the equatorial aryl groups but suppressed by the more electronegative fluorine atoms in the apical positions. This is in fairly good accord with the stability of the trigonal bipyramidal geometry. The 13C NMR study of 1–3 showed that the signals due to the ipso carbons (C1) attached to the bismuth atom shift downfield with increasing electron-withdrawing nature of the p-substituents. No such tendency was observed in other aromatic ring carbons. The electronic effect on the C1 atoms, similar to that on the chlorination of 1 and degradation of 2 and 3, indicates the significant participation of the C1 atoms in these reactions through the Bi–C1 bonds.