Cupric acetate complexes of pyridine and α-picoline

Abstract

Complexes of the copper(II) salts of halogen-substituted acetates with the ligands pyridine and α-picoline have been prepared and studied, α-Picoline forms 1 : 1 and 2 : 1 complexes. With the exception of the trifluoracetate complex all 1 : 1 species are dimers. The 2 : 1 complexes are purple solids giving blue solutions in organic solvents (although a blue isomer of (CHCl₂CO₂)₂Cu(α-pic)₂ has been isolated). There are two arrangements of the α-picoline ligands which minimise interligand steric repulsions and which provide a possible explanation of the difference between solid and solution spectra of these complexes.