EXPANSION OF THE NITRILE CAPPED CLUSTER FE3(CO)9(N-CPH)

Treatment of the cluster Fe-3(CO)(9)(mu(3)-eta(2)-N=CPh) (1) with the cluster expansion reagents Fe-2(CO)(9), CpRh(CO)(2), and Ru-3(CO)(12) results in. the formation of the tetranuclear clusters Fe-3(CO)(9)ML(n )(mu(4)-eta(2)-N=CPh) (2a, ML(n) = Fe(CO)(3); 2b, ML(n) = RhCp; 2c, ML (n) = Ru(CO)(3)). The butterfly shape of these clusters and the unsymm etrical capping mode of the benzonitrile ligand were confirmed by stru cture determination of the Fe3Ru cluster 2c.