Patent ID: 7758897

Claim:
A process for making a metal complex, the process comprising: reacting a compound of a metal of groups 6 to 10 of the Periodic Table of the Elements with at least one compound selected from the group of compounds having formulae II and III wherein R 1 , R 2 , R 3 and R 4 are the same or different and each is a linear, branched, substituted or unsubstituted, cyclic or alicyclic alkyl group having from 1 to 24 carbon atoms; a substituted or unsubstituted, mono- or polycyclic aryl group having from 6 to 24 carbon atoms; or a mono- or polycyclic, substituted or unsubstituted heterocycle having from 2 to 24 carbon atoms and having a heteroatom selected from the group consisting of N, O and S, and R 3 and R 4 are linked by a covalent bond; wherein R 5 , R 6 and R 7 are optionally the same or different and each is H; a linear, branched, substituted or unsubstituted, cyclic or alicyclic alkyl group having from 1 to 24 carbon atoms; or a substituted or unsubstituted, mono- or polycyclic aryl group having from 6 to 24 carbon atoms, with the proviso that when groups R 3 and R 4 in formula are bonded together to form an imidazole ring, the metal of the metal compound reactant can not be a member of group 10 ; wherein the at least one compound selected from the group of compounds having formulae II and III is selected from the group of compounds having formulae V, VI, VII, VIII, IX and X wherein R 8 , R 9 , R 10 and R 11 are the same or different and are each H or have one of the definitions of R 1 ; and wherein the metal complex made by the process is represented by a formula (I) in which Z is a metal complex fragment of the formula: [L a M b ][A] n (XI) and M is a metal of groups 6 to 10 of the Periodic Table of the Elements, L is one or more identical or different mono- or polydentate, charged or uncharged ligands, A is a singly charged anion or the chemical equivalent of a multiply charged anion, b is an integer from 1 to 3, a is an integer from 0 to 5×b, and n is an integer from 0 to 6.