Coordination chemistry of alkali and alkaline earth cations. Barium-crown encapsulation studies: The synthesis and crystal structure of barium(picrate)2(benzo-15-crown-5) monohydrate

The interaction of barium with benzo-15-crown-5 (B15C5) has been followed under the competitive effect of various chelating organic anions (L), nitrophenolates and nitrobenzoates, in ethanol and ethanol-water (9:1). The rather heavily hydrated BaL₂ salts yield novel 1:1 stoichiometric products in monohydrated or anhydrous states. Use of excess crown does not under any condition lead to the formation of 1:2 charge separated complexes, expected in view of the cavity and the cation sizes. The 1:1 Ba–B15C5 interaction is counteracted by L in accordance with its nucleophilicity, i.e., the pK_a value of its parent acid, HL. The complex Ba(picrate)₂(B15C5)·H₂O (BaC₂₆H₂₆N₆O₂₀, FW=879.0), is monoclinic,P2₁/c,a=11.43(1),b=16.31(3),c=17.38(2) Å, =92.265(3)°,Z=4,D_c=1.77 g/cm³,D₀=1.73 g/cm³, MoK, =0.71069 Å, 2 (4.0–50°), =13.5 cm^–1,F(000)=1752,T=–32°C. FinalR for the 5926 reflections was 0.049. The structure reveals barium to be 10-coordinated through all the five crown oxygens (Ba–O, 2.800 to 3.002 Å), the two bidentate picrates (Ba–O, 2.642 and 2.666 Å; Ba–ONO, 2.825 and 2.994 Å), and the water molecule (2.711 Å) so that the cation constitutes a pseudo-sandwich of the crown on one side and the anionic species on the other.Supplementary Data relating to this article are deposited with the British Library as Supplementary Publication No. SUP 82007 (50 pages). To obtain copies, see page ii of this issue.