In Situ Preparation of Palladium Diphosphane Catalysts

The efficiency of a superficially simple preparation procedure for palladium-diphosphane catalysts has been examined. Preparation of Pd(dppe)X2 in situ by mixing equimolar amounts of Pd(OAc)2 and 1,2-bis(diphenylphosphanyl)ethane (dppe) in methanol in the first step unexpectedly affords the bischelate [Pd(dppe)2](OAc)2 as the (main) kinetic product. Subsequently, the slow reaction of [Pd(dppe)2](OAc)2 and unreacted Pd(OAc)2 forms the thermodynamically favored monochelate [Pd(dppe)(OAc)2] (following first-order kinetics). Conversion of the bischelate into the monochelate stops after addition of strong acid (HX) in the second step, thus affording a mixture of active — Pd(dppe)X2 — virtually inactive — [Pd(dppe)2]X2 — and unstable — PdX2 — species. This procedure was also evaluated for some other diphosphane ligands and methods are given to overcome the encountered problem.