Increasing the Lipophilic Character of Tetraphenylborate Anions through Silyl Substituents

Trimethylsilyl- and dimethyl(1 H,1 H,2 H,2 H -perfluorooctyl)silyl substituents have been introduced in the para position of tetraphenylborate anions, resulting in enhanced solubility of their complexes n -Bu 4 N[B(C 6 H 4 SiMe 2 R-4) 4 ] (R = Me, CH 2 CH 2 C 6 F 13 ) and [Rh(dppe) 2 ][B(C 6 H 4 SiMe 2 R-4) 4 ] (dppe = 1,2-bis(diphenylphosphino)ethane, R = Me, CH 2 CH 2 C 6 F 13 ) in apolar organic solvents.