In Situ Synthesis of Hexadentate Cyclometalated Ir(III) Complexes as Photocatalysts for the Oxidation of Sulfides into Sulfoxides in Water

The aerobic photooxidation of sulfides into sulfoxides in eco-friendly solvents, notably water, at room temperature, represents a significant interest in the domain of synthetic chemistry. This study introduces four highly stable hexadentate Ir(III) complexes: [Ir(fpqen)](PF6) (1), [Ir(btqen)](PF6) (2), [Ir(bmpqen)](PF6) (3), and [Ir(bnqen](PF6) (4) (where bfpqen is N,N′-bis(2-(4-fluorophenyl)quinolin-8-yl)ethane-1,2-diamine, btqen is N,N′-bis(2-(4-tolyl)quinolin-8-yl)ethane-1,2-diamine, bmpqen is N,N′-bis(2-(4-methoxyphenyl)quinolin-8-yl)ethane-1,2-diamine, and bnqen is N,N′-bis(2-naphthylquinolin-8-yl)ethane-1,2-diamine). These complexes were synthesized utilizing an in situ inter-ligand C-N cross-coupling photoreaction of the precursors [Ir(L)2(en)](PF6) (L is 2-(4-fluorophenyl)quinoline, (2-(4-tolyl)quinoline, 2-(4-methoxyphenyl)quinoline or 2-naphthylquinoline, and en is 1,2-diamine) under benign conditions. This methodology furnishes a valuable and complementary approach for the in situ generation of multidentate complexes through a post-coordination inter-ligand-coupling strategy under mild conditions. Moreover, these hexadentate Ir(III) complexes exhibit pronounced catalytic activity and chemo-selectivity toward the aerobic photooxidations of sulfides into sulfoxides in aqueous media at room temperature, offering a new avenue for the sustainable synthesis of sulfoxides.