''cis''-Dichlorobis(bipyridine)ruthenium(II) is the

coordination complex A coordination complex consists of a central atom or ion, which is usually metallic and is called the ''coordination centre'', and a surrounding array of bound molecules or ions, that are in turn known as ''ligands'' or complexing agents. Many ...

with the formula RuCl₂(bipy)₂, where bipy is

2,2'-bipyridine The comma is a punctuation mark that appears in several variants in different languages. It has the same shape as an apostrophe or single closing quotation mark () in many typefaces, but it differs from them in being placed on the baseline o ...

. It is a dark green diamagnetic solid that is a precursor to many other complexes of

ruthenium Ruthenium is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ru and atomic number 44. It is a rare transition metal belonging to the platinum group of the periodic table. Like the other metals of the platinum group, ruthenium is inert to ...

, mainly by substitution of the two chloride ligands. The compound has been crystallized as diverse

hydrates In chemistry, a hydrate is a substance that contains water Water (chemical formula ) is an inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the ...

Synthesis and structure

The complex is prepared by heating a DMF solution of

ruthenium trichloride Ruthenium(III) chloride is the chemical compound with the formula RuCl3. "Ruthenium(III) chloride" more commonly refers to the hydrate RuCl3·''x''H2O. Both the anhydrous and hydrated species are dark brown or black solids. The hydrate, with a va ...

and bipyridine. With

octahedral coordination geometry In chemistry, octahedral molecular geometry, also called square bipyramidal, describes the shape of compounds with six atoms or groups of atoms or ligands symmetrically arranged around a central atom, defining the vertices of an octahedron. The oc ...

, the complex exists exclusively as the

chiral Chirality is a property of asymmetry important in several branches of science. The word ''chirality'' is derived from the Greek (''kheir''), "hand", a familiar chiral object. An object or a system is ''chiral'' if it is distinguishable from ...

cis isomer. The corresponding Ru(III) salts are also known.{{cite journal, title=Structural Variations Induced by Changes in Oxidation State and Their Role in Electron Transfer. Crystal and Molecular Structures of ''cis''- u(bpy)₂Cl₂3.5H₂O and ''cis''- u(bpy)₂Cl₂l.2H₂O, first1=Drake S. , last1=Eggleston, first2=Kenneth A. , last2=Goldsby, first3=Derek J., last3=Hodgson, first4=Thomas J., last4=Meyer , journal=Inorg. Chem., year=1985, volume=24, issue=26 , pages=4573–4580, doi=10.1021/ic00220a029

References

Ruthenium complexes Coordination complexes Ruthenium(II) compounds Bipyridines Pyridine complexes Chloro complexes