Organometallic Compounds
Organozinc compounds contain zinc—carbon covalent bonds. Diethylzinc ((C2H5)2Zn) was first reported in 1848. It was made by reaction of zinc and ethyl iodide and is the first compound known to contain a metal—carbon sigma bond. For a long time it was a mystery why copper(II) did not form an analogous compound. It was not until the 1980s that the reason was found: the zinc compound does not undergo the Beta-hydride elimination reaction whereas the compound of the transition metal copper does so. Alkyl and aryl zinc compounds are contain the linear C—Zn—C motif. Because the zinc centre is coordinatively unsaturated the compound are powerful electrophiles. In fact the low-molecular weight compounds will ignite spontaneously on contact with air and are immediately destroyed by reaction with water molecules. The use of zinc alkyls has been largely superseded by the use of the more easily handled Grignard reagents. This demonstrates yet another connection between the chemistries of zinc and magnesium.
Zinc cyanide, Zn(CN)2, is used as a catalyst in some organic reactions.
Organometallic compounds of zinc(I) contain M—M bonds. decamethyldizincocene is now known.
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