We report an original alkane elimination approach, entailing the protonolysis of triisobutylaluminum by the acidic hydrides from Cp*IrH₄. This strategy allows access to a series of well-defined tri- and tetranuclear iridium aluminum polyhydride clusters, depending on the stoichiometry: [Cp*IrH₃Al(iBu)₂]₂ (1), [Cp*IrH₂Al(iBu)]₂ (2), [(Cp*IrH₃)₂Al(iBu)] (3), and [(Cp*IrH₃)₃Al] (4). Contrary to most transition-metal aluminohydride complexes, which can be considered as [AlH_x+3]^x- aluminates and LnM⁺ moieties, the situation here is reversed: These complexes have original structures that are best described as [Cp*IrH_x]^n- iridate units surrounding cationic Al(III) fragments. This is corroborated by reactivity studies, which show that the hydrides are always retained at the iridium sites and that the [Cp*IrH₃]^- moieties are labile and can be transmetalated to yield potassium ([KIrCp*H₃], 8) or silver (([AgIrCp*H₃]_n, 10) derivatives of potential synthetic interest. DFT calculations show that the bonding situation can vary in these systems, from 3-center 2-electron hydride-bridged Lewis adducts of the form Ir-H⇀Al to direct polarized metal-metal interaction from donation of d-electrons of Ir to the Al metal, and both types of interactions take place to some extent in each of these clusters.

Naïme Soulé

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