Tris-triphenylsiloxy compounds of aluminium

Abstract
The reaction of AlMe3 with three equivalents of HOSiPh3 in THF results in the formation of the solvent complex Al(OSiPh3)3(THF) (1). Hydrolysis of 1 yields the stable water complex Al(OSiPh3)3(H2O)(THF)2 (2) in which the THF molecules are hydrogen bonded to the coordinated water ligand. Compounds 1 and 2 have been fully characterized by 1H, 13C, 17O, 27Al, and 29Si NMR and IR spectroscopy. In addition, variable temperature 1H NMR of 2 has been employed to investigate the steric interactions between the phenyl rings of adjacent siloxide ligands. The molecular structures of the solvates 1•(THF) and 2•(THF)1.25 have been determined by X-ray crystallography. 1•(THF): monoclinic P21/c, a = 10.03 (1), b = 23.758 (6), c = 23.294 (7) Å, β = 101.13 (6)°, Z = 4, R = 0.084, Rw = 0.094. 2•(THF)1.25: cubic , a = 23.034 (3) Å, Z = 4, R = 0.093, Rw = 0.099. Keywords: aluminium, siloxide, hydrolysis, complex, NMR spectroscopy.