The pyrolysis of a tungsten alkyne complex as a low temperature route to tungsten carbide

The synthesis of designed organometallic compounds and their selective activation and transformation into materials of high purity (for electronic applications), high strength and/or high temperature stability (for refractory or structural applications), represents a potential area of extreme growth in organometallic chemistry. Research in this area could provide entirely new, inexpensive, fabrication methods for common and exotic materials. In this paper, the authors develop design principles for the preparation of organometallic precursors, ''premetallics'' that can be selectively converted, in high yields, to a desired refractory metal. They also describe preliminary efforts to prepare tungsten carbides (WC/sub x/) from a prematallic