Ruthenium pentacarbonyl is the
ruthenium compound with the formula Ru(CO)
5. It is a colorless, light-sensitive liquid that readily
decarbonylates upon standing at room temperature. It is of academic interest as an intermediate for the synthesis of
metal carbonyl complexes.
[
]
Preparation
Ru(CO)5 was originally prepared by carbonylation
In chemistry, carbonylation refers to reactions that introduce carbon monoxide (CO) into organic and inorganic substrates. Carbon monoxide is abundantly available and conveniently reactive, so it is widely used as a reactant in industrial chemis ...
of ruthenium salts in the presence of a reducing agent.[W. Manchot, Wilhelm J. Manchot "Darstellung von Rutheniumcarbonylen und -nitrosylen" Zeitschrift für Anorganische und Allgemeine Chemie 1936, volume 226, pp. 385-415. ] A more recent preparation involves photolysis
Photodissociation, photolysis, photodecomposition, or photofragmentation is a chemical reaction in which molecules of a chemical compound are broken down by absorption of light or photons. It is defined as the interaction of one or more photons wi ...
of triruthenium dodecacarbonyl in the presence of carbon monoxide
Carbon monoxide (chemical formula CO) is a poisonous, flammable gas that is colorless, odorless, tasteless, and slightly less dense than air. Carbon monoxide consists of one carbon atom and one oxygen atom connected by a triple bond. It is the si ...
:[Adams, R. D.; Barnard, T. S.; Cortopassi, J. E.; Wu, W.; Li, Z. "Platinum-ruthenium carbonyl cluster complexes" Inorganic Syntheses 1998, volume 32, pp. 280-284. ]
:Ru3(CO)12 + 3 CO 3 Ru(CO)5
It is characterized by two intense νCO bands in the IR spectrum at 2038 and 2003 cm−1 (hexane solution).[
]
Comparisons of M(CO)5 (M = Fe, Ru, Os)
Whereas Fe(CO)5 is completely robust at room temperature, samples of Ru(CO)5 are typically reddish owing to contamination by Ru3(CO)12. The conversion is rapid in solution. Os(CO)5 requires heating to 80 °C to effect conversion to triosmium dodecacarbonyl.
References
{{Ruthenium compounds
Ruthenium complexes
Carbonyl complexes