Chapter 12: Activation of the Dinitrogen Molecule: The Relationship Between the Structures and Reactivities of Dinitrogen Metal Complexes

Molecular nitrogen (N₂) is the most abundant gas in the atmosphere, but its high stability and low reactivity make it difficult to convert it directly into more value-added nitrogen-containing compounds. Study on the dinitrogen molecule activation reactions using molecular catalysts has been extensively studied, and the conversion of dinitrogen to ammonia and nitrogen-containing compounds under mild conditions has been achieved, although the progress has yet been in a fundamental level. The N₂-coordinated complexes exhibit a variety of binding modes, which give rise to specific reactivities. In this chapter, we describe the representative N₂ coordination complexes and their reactivities that have been reported so far in order to clarify the correlation between the binding modes and the reactivities of dinitrogen.