A mononuclear cobalt(III) carboxylate complex with a fully O-based coordination sphere: CoIII-O bond homolysis and controlled radical polymerisation from [Co(acac)2(O2CPh)]

International audience; The addition of benzoyl peroxide to [CoII(acac)2] in a 1:2 ratio selectively produces [CoIII(acac)2(O2CPh)], a diamagnetic (NMR) mononuclear CoIII complex with an octahedral (X-ray diffraction) coordination geometry. It is the first reported mononuclear CoIII derivative with a chelated monocarboxylate ligand and an entirely O-based coordination sphere. The compound degrades in solution quite slowly by homolytic CoIII-O2CPh bond cleavage upon warming above 40°C to produce benzoate radicals and can serve as a unimolecular thermal initiator for the well-controlled radical polymerisation of vinyl acetate. Addition of ligands (L = py, NEt3) induces benzoate chelate ring opening and formation of both cis and trans isomers of [CoIII(acac)2(O2CPh)(L)] for L = py under kinetic control, then converting quantitatively to the cis isomer, whereas the reaction is less selective and equilibrated for L = NEt3. The py addition strengthens the CoIII-O2CPh bond and lowers the initiator efficiency in radical polymerisation, whereas the NEt3 addition results in benzoate radical quenching by a redox process. In addition to clarifying the mechanism of the radical polymerisation redox initiation by peroxides and rationalizing the quite low efficiency factor for the previously reported [CoIIacac)2]/peroxide-initiated organometallic-mediated radical polymerisation (OMRP) of vinyl acetate, this investigation provides relevant information on the CoIII-O homolytic bond cleavage process.