262 Organometallics, Vol. 8, No. 1, 1989 Organometallchemie. By Ch. Elschenbroich (PhilippsUniversitat Marburg) and A. Salzer (Universitat Zurich). 2nd Edition. B. G. Teubner, Stuttgart. 1988. 555 pp. DM 46.00. ISBN 3-519-13501-9. The authors are to be congratulated on presenting an excellent overview of the field or organometallic chemistry. The book is subtitled a short introduction and is based on lectures for advanced students in inorganic chemistry. The traditional organization according to classes of compound emphasizes the breadth of organometallic chemistry. A typical chapter presents synthetic methods and physical and chemical properties of molecules. General aspects are summarized in separate chapters or in introductory paragraphs. Interspersed are so-called excursions, covering relevant topics such as spectroscopy-e.g. applications of multinuclear NMR-, bonding, and organometallic photochemistry. The clear presentation of the material is very pleasing. Points of special interest are highlighted, physical data are listed in tables, orbital diagrams are presented for important types of molecule, and most of all perspective drawings are shown for the majority of compounds. The book contains an extensive list of organometallic reference literature and review articles. I t also makes reference to the primary literature by noting principal author and year of publication. The book is thus easy to use as a guide to organometallic chemistry. Three short introductory chapters list historical milestones and current tendencies, delineate the range and subdivision of organometallic chemistry, and discuss aspects of bond energy, polarity, and reactivity of metal-carbon bonds. This discussion, however, is restricted to main-group element and d’O transitionmetal compounds. The first of the two main parts of the book covers Main Group Element Organyls. It is organized by element groups and individual elements according to the periodic table. The chemically related transition metal groups 11 and 12 are treated along with the main-group elements. For lithium and magnesium organyls, for example, useful information on how to determine the concentration of active reagent is given, general and special synthetic procedures are mentioned, and the structure (aggregation),bonding, reactivity, and simple organic synthetic applications are discussed. The chapters on alkali-metal and alkaline-earth-metal organyls are followed by the organometallic chemistry of Zn, Cd, and Hg including an “excursion” into biological aspects of organomercury compounds. The metal organyls of groups 13 and 14 are thoroughly discussed, especially those of the important elements boron, aluminum, silicon, and tin. In the following chapters the organometallic chemistry of the group 15 (As, Sb, Bi) and group 16 (Se, Te) elements and of the group 11transition metals (Cu, Ag,Au) are described. The second major part of the book is devoted to Transition Metal Organyls. The organotransition-metal chemistry is organized according to
Book Reviews bonding mode of ligands, u-donor ligands, u-donor/a-acceptor ligands, and u,r-donorlr-acceptor ligands and is subdivided by type of ligand. This scheme could be very instructive, but it is not strictly adhered to when it seems more appropriate to emphasize strong chemical relationships according to ligand type. Alkyl (and aryl) ligands are discussed under a-donor ligands while vinyl, aryl, and acetylide ligands are treated as u-donor/r-acceptor ligands. There is, however, no misunderstanding that the latter would have significant a-acceptor properties. Monoolefin ligands are grouped together with polyene ligands-based on intra-ligand r-symmetry-even though only the latter can act as o,a-donor/*-acceptbr ligands. On the other hand, the ability of alkynes to act as u,a-donorla-acceptor ligands is not emphasized. All major classes of compound, such tu metal carbonyl, carbene, olefin, polyene, and a-aromat complexes are thoroughly discussed. There are additional chapters on metal-metal bonds and clusters and on transition-metal-catalyzed reactions. Organic synthetic applications are considered throughout. Despite the common definition of organometallic chemistry the material covered is not narrowly limited to compounds containing metal-carbon bonds. A larger context and better understanding is provided by touching upon allied chemistry, e.g., boron hydrides, boron-nitrogen compounds, main-group element multiple bonds, transition-metal complexes of main-group elements, heterocycles, hydride, and nitrosyl ligands. There is, however, an important dimension of organometallic chemistry which is perhaps not adequately addressed, namely, dynamic behavior and reaction mechanism. This is particularly apparent in the section of transition metals, where the organization by type of compound is not suitable to delineate the principles of reactivity. While all the important types of reaction are mentioned along with appropriate types of ligand or together with catalytic applications, the uninitiated reader will not easily be able to recognize the general patterns. The subject of reactivity should be focused on in a separate chapter. It would also appear desirable to present in detail more key mechanistic studies which are instrumental in the formulation of general rules of reactivity. The discussion of olefin metathesis may serve as a critical example. This is now one of the better understood organometallic reactions, yet the recent developments leading to defined catalysts are not considered. In summary, Organometallchemie by Elschenbroich and Salzer is an excellent introduction to organometallic chemistry. The book provides a broad perspective of the field. It is written in German, but an English translation could well be successful as a text for advanced undergraduate and beginning graduate students a t American colleges and universities. Andreas Mayr, State University of New York a t Stony Brook
