TY  - JOUR
A1  - Sperlich, Eric
A1  - Köckerling, Martin
T1  - Cluster salts [Nb6Cl12(HIm)(6)]A(n) (with HIm=1H-imidazole and A=Mineral Acid Anion, n=1 or 2) made in and with Bronsted-basic ionic liquids and liquid mixtures
JF  - ChemistryOpen
N2  - Four new hexanuclear niobium cluster compounds of the general formula [Nb6Cl12(HIm)(6)](A)(n) . x(solvent molecule) (HIm=1H-imidazole, A=mineral acid anion, Cl- (n=2) (1), (SO4)(2-) (n=1) (2), (CrO4)(2-) (n=1) (3), and (HAsO4)(2-) (n=1) (4)) were prepared. Their synthesis can be done in basic ionic liquids, which form on the addition of a mineral acid, which also delivers the counter anion for the final cluster compound, to an excess of the 1H-imidazole. Some addition of an auxiliary solvent, like methanol, improves the speed of crystallisation. The cluster unit comprises a hexanuclear Nb-6 unit of octahedral shape with the edges bridged by Cl atoms and the exo sites being occupied by N-bonded 1H-imidazole ligands. The cluster cation carries sixteen cluster-based electrons. Between the NH groups of the ligands of the cluster unit, the anions and the co-crystallised water (1), or 1H-imidazole and methanol molecules (2, 3, and 4) a network of hydrogen bonds exists.
KW  - cluster
KW  - ionic liquid
KW  - structure elucidation
KW  - heterocyclic ligand
KW  - Niobium
Y1  - 2021
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1002/open.202000266
SN  - 2191-1363
VL  - 10
IS  - 2
SP  - 248
EP  - 254
PB  - Wiley-VCH
CY  - Weinheim
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Sperlich, Eric
A1  - Köckerling, Martin
T1  - The double cluster compound [Nb6Cl14(MeCN)(4)] [Nb6Cl14(pyz)(4)].6MeCN (Me: methyl, pyz: pyrazine) with a layered structure resulting from weak intermolecular interactions
JF  - Zeitschrift für Naturforschung
N2  - The synthesis and the crystal structure of the double cluster compound [Nb6Cl14(MeCN)(4)][Nb6Cl14(pyz)(4)]middot6CH(3)CN are described. The synthesis is based on a partial ligand exchange reaction, which proceeds upon dissolving [Nb6Cl14(pyz)(4)]middot2CH(2)Cl(2) in acetonitrile. The compound is built up of two discrete neutral cluster units, which consist of octahedra of Nb-6 atoms coordinated by 12 edge-bridging chlorido and two terminal chlorido ligands, and four acetonitrile ligands on one and four pyrazine ligands on the other cluster unit. Co-crystallized acetonitrile molecules are also present. The single-crystal structure determination has revealed a cluster arrangement in which the [Nb6Cl14(pyz)(4)] units are connected by (halogen) lone-pair-(pyrazine) pi interactions. These lead to chains of [Nb6Cl14(pyz)(4)] clusters. These chains are further connected to cluster layers by (nitrile-halogen) dipole-dipole interactions, in which the [Nb6Cl14(MeCN)(4)] and co-crystallized MeCN molecules are also involved. These cluster layers are arranged parallel to the crystallographic {011} plane.
KW  - cluster
KW  - crystal structure
KW  - dipole-dipole interaction
KW  - halide
KW  - lone-pair-pi interactions
KW  - niobium
Y1  - 2023
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1515/znb-2023-0001
SN  - 0932-0776
SN  - 1865-7117
VL  - 78
IS  - 5
SP  - 279
EP  - 283
PB  - De Gruyter
CY  - Berlin
ER  -