Biomimetic hydrogen generation catalyzed by triironnonacarbonyl disulfide cluster

Triironnonacarbonyl disulfide cluster, a stable and synthetic precursor for active site models of [Fe-Fe] hydrogenase enzyme, has been evaluated as catalyst for the electrochemical generation of hydrogen by cyclic voltammetry. In the presence of acetic acid, Fe3S2(CO)9 catalyzes the reduction of proton to hydrogen at -2.24 V (vs. Fc/Fc+) with an overpotential of -0.78 V (acetonitrile as solvent). The overpotential is comparable to those reported for diironcarbonyl models of [Fe-Fe] hydrogenase.