The Interaction of Co(II), Ni(II), Cu(II), Zn(II), and Cd(II) with Mixed Donor Macrocycles Containing Pendant Carboxylic Acid Functions

The syntheses of mixed oxygen-nitrogen donor macrocycles incorporating two or three pendant carboxylic acid groups are described. Potentiometric titrations in water (I = 0.1; KNO₃) at 25°C have been used to determine the stability constants for the 1: 1 (metal:ligand) complexes of Co(II). Ni(II), Cu(II), Zn(II), and Cd(II). The constants obtained are compared with the previously determined values for the corresponding complexes of the unsubstituted macrocyclic precursors. The results of these studies indicate that each carboxylate function participates in binding to the central metal. For some metal-ion/ligand systems there is evidence that ring size effects influence the overall stability patterns and that, in such cases, both the ether oxygens as well as the tertiary amines of the macrocyclic rings appear to bind to the metal.