Patent ID: 7435840

Claim:
A process for preparing ferrocene, bisindenylferrocene or ruthenocene having a structural element of the formula I in the aromatic hydrocarbon ring, where M is —Li, —MgX 3 , (C 1 -C 18 -alkyl) 3 Sn—, —ZnX 3 or —B(O—C 1 -C 4 -alkyl) 2 , X 1 and X 2 are each, independently of one another, O or N and C-bonded hydrocarbon or heterohydrocarbon radicals are bound to the free bonds of the O or N atoms, the group —C═C— together with carbon atoms forms a hydrocarbon aromatic and X 3 is Cl, Br or I, characterized in that ferrocene, bisindenylferrocene or ruthenocene having a structural element of the formula II in the aromatic ring, where X 1 and X 2 are as defined above and the group —C═C— together with carbon atoms forms a hydrocarbon aromatic, is reacted with at least equivalent amounts of alkyllithium, a magnesium Grignard compound or an aliphatic Li sec-amide or X 3 Mg sec-amide, and, to prepare compounds of the formula I in which M is —MgX 3 , (C 1 -C 18 -alkyl) 3 Sn—, —ZnX 3 or —B(O—C 1 -C 4 -alkyl) 2 , a lithium compound of the formula Ia, is reacted with at least equivalent amounts of Mg(X 3 ) 2 , Zn(X 3 ) 2 ,(C 1 -C 18 -alkyl) 3 SnX 3 or B(O—C 1 -C 4 -alkyl) 3 .