Copper(II) carboxylates with 4-aminopyridine: neutral mononuclear structures, isomerism of aceto compounds and a novel tetranuclear structure

Abstract

Reactions of copper(II) carboxylates with 4-aminopyridine (4-apy) were investigated and their products structurally characterized by single crystal X-ray diffraction. Reaction of copper(II) acetate resulted in two isomers of a monomeric complex of composition Cu(ac)₂(4-apy)₂ with markedly different stabilities: the violet form, 1, unstable in air and the blue, stable form, 2. In both isomers the ligands are arranged around the copper atom in a trans geometry. The 4-apy ligands lie almost in the plane in 1, while they are twisted with respect to each other in 2. Variations were observed also in the coordination of the acetate groups to the copper ion. The energy difference between the two isomers was obtained on the basis of ab initio MO calculations. The result agrees well with the observed relative stabilities in the solid state. Monomeric complexes of the same stoichiometry were obtained also by the reaction of Cu(II) hexanoate and heptanoate with 4-apy. The violet Cu(hex)₂(4-apy)₂, 3, and Cu(hep)₂(4-apy)₂, 4, are isostructural and possess trans geometry of the ligands around the copper centre. Reaction of 4-apy with Cu(II) octanoate lead to formation of a novel, unprecedented basic centrosymmetric tetranuclear compound of composition Cu₄(oct)₆(OH)₂(4-apy)₂, 5. Complex 5 contains bidentate bridging and monoatomic bridging carboxylate groups, triply bridging hydroxyl groups and 4-aminopyridine as a terminal ligand. In all five compounds 4-apy is coordinated through the endocyclic nitrogen atom only.