Introduction to Coordination Compounds

Abstract The chapter provides a brief introduction to the uses of metal complexes and an analysis of the studies in the literature since 1995 on metal complexes and supercritical fluids in metal extraction, in synthesis of nanostructured materials and in homogeneous catalysis. The increasing number of studies in synthesis of nanostructured materials using metal complexes and SCFs is emphasized. The different types of coordination compounds and ligands are described. The structures of complexes based on coordination numbers are described and examples are provided for various geometries. The types of bonding in metal complexes including sigma donation, pi donation and pi acceptance are discussed. The reactions such as ligand exchange, oxidative addition and reductive elimination, which organometallic complexes go through, are given.