Can Palladium Acetate Lose Its “Saltiness”? Catalytic Activities of the Impurities in Palladium Acetate

Commercially available palladium acetate often contains two major impurities, whose presence can impact the overall catalytic efficacy. This systematic study provides a comparison of the differences in catalytic activity of pure palladium acetate, Pd3(OAc)6, with the two impurities: Pd3(OAc)5(NO2) and polymeric Pd(OAc)2n in a variety of cross-coupling reactions. The solid state (13)C NMR spectra of all three compounds in conjunction with DFT calculations confirm their reported geometries.