Dihydrogen Bonding, Proton Transfer and Beyond: What We Can Learn from Kinetics and Thermodynamics

Hydrogen bonding to transition metal hydride complexes and its role in the proton transfer process has been a subject of the authors' research interest in recent years. The present microreview analyzes the relationships of kinetic and thermodynamic parameters of dihydrogen bonding, MH···HA, proton transfer, yielding [M(η 2 -H 2 )] species, and subsequent steps such as [M(η 2 -H 2 )] to [M(H) 2 ] isomerization or H 2 evolution on the basis of all data acquired so far. It aims at showing the factors that determine the stability of the species involved, the physico-chemical (thermodynamic and kinetic) origin of the effects observed, and, ideally, allow one to better govern the hydrides reactivity.