2,2′-Bi­pyridine­(octa­carbonyl)­dirhenium(Re–Re)

In the title compound, [Re₂(C₁₀H₈N₂)(CO)₈], both Re atoms have distorted octahedral coordination geometry. The carbonyls of the Re(CO)₅ moiety are fully staggered relative to those of the Re(CO)₃ unit. We are currently interested in the application of Re-di­imine complexes as catalysts for the photo- and electro-chemical reduction of CO₂. The (2,2′-bi­pyridine)Re(CO)₃^. radical, a key intermediate in the [Cl(2,2′-bi­pyridine)Re(CO)₃] catalytic CO₂ reduction cycle, is formed by Cl⁻ loss from [Cl(2,2′-bi­pyridine)Re(CO)₃]^−.. We synthesized the title compound as a precursor to the (2,2′-bi­pyridine)Re(CO)₃^. radical and so that we can ex­amine the structural features of the (2,2′-bi­pyridine)Re(CO)₃ moiety following irradiation of the title compound.