Self-assembled antimony-thiolate Sb 2 L 3 and Sb 2 L 2 Cl 2 complexes

Abstract

The synthesis and single crystal X-ray structures of two new self-assembled antimony(III)-thiolate complexes are described: Sb₂L₃ (1) and “anti”-Sb₂L₂Cl₂ (2), where H₂L is α,α′-dimercaptoxylene. The Sb(III) ions in both complexes exhibit tripodal coordination geometries with stereochemically-active lone pairs. The extended structure of 1 in the crystalline state reveals numerous C–H···S interactions, while the packing in 2 is dominated by numerous antimony-sulfur and antimony-chlorine secondary bonding interactions. These structures demonstrate that a supramolecular design strategy can be developed to prepare self-assembled structures based on the coordination geometry of Sb(III) and the reversible formation of antimony-thiolate bonds in solution. This strategy offers promise in the specific chelation of toxic ions such as antimony, a contaminant of increasing environmental concern.