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Clathrate hydrate phases of Cl 2 and Br 2 guest molecules have been known for about 200 years. The crystal structure of these phases was recently re-determined with high accuracy by single crystal X-ray diffraction. In these structures, the water oxygen-halogen atom distances are determined to be shorter than the sum of the van der Waals radii, which indicates the action of some type of non-covalent interaction between the dihalogens and water molecules. Given that in the hydrate phases both lone pairs of each water oxygen atom are engaged in hydrogen bonding with other water molecules of the lattice, the nature of the oxygen-halogen interactions may not be the standard halogen bonds characterized recently in the solid state materials and enzyme-substrate compounds. The nature of the halogen-water interactions for the Cl 2 and Br 2 molecules in two isolated clathrate hydrate cages has recently been studied with ab initio calculations and Natural Bond Order analysis (Ochoa-Resendiz et al. J. Chem. Phys. 2016, 145, 161104). Here we present the results of ab initio calculations and natural localized molecular orbital analysis for Cl 2 and Br 2 guests in all cage types observed in the cubic structure I and tetragonal structure I clathrate hydrates to characterize the orbital interactions between the dihalogen guests and water. Calculations with isolated cages and cages with one shell of coordinating molecules are considered. The computational analysis is used to understand the nature of the halogen bonding in these materials and to interpret the guest positions in the hydrate cages obtained from the X-ray crystal structures.

Water versus fluorine: Clathrate hydrates encaging hydrofluorocarbons as guests show both isotropic and anisotropic distributions within host water cages, depending on the number of fluorine atoms in the guest molecule; this is caused by changes in intermolecular interactions to host water molecules in the hydrates., (© 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)

Methane trapped in the two distinct dodecahedral cages of the ionic clathrate hydrate of TBAB was studied by single crystal XRD and MD simulation. The relative CH4 occupancies over the cage types were opposite to those of CO2, which illustrates the interplay between the cage symmetry and guest shape and dynamics, and thus the gas selectivity.

The understanding and eventual control of guest molecule transport in gas hydrates is of central importance for the efficient synthesis and processing of these materials for applications in the storage, separation, and sequestration of gases and natural gas production. Previously, some links have been established between dynamics of the host water molecules and guest-host hydrogen bonding interactions, but direct observation of transport in the form of cage-to-cage guest diffusion is still lacking. Recent calculations have suggested that pairs of different guest molecules in neighboring cages can affect guest-host hydrogen bonding and, therefore, defect injection and water lattice motions. We have chosen two sets of hydrate guest pairs, tetrahydrofuran (THF)-CO2 and isobutane-CO2, that are predicted to enhance or to diminish guest-host hydrogen bonding interactions as compared to those in pure CO2 hydrate and we have studied guest dynamics in each using (13)C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) methods. In addition, we have obtained the crystal structure of the THF-CO2 sII hydrate using the combined single crystal X-ray diffraction and (13)C NMR powder pattern data and have performed molecular dynamics-simulation of the CO2 dynamics. The NMR powder line shape studies confirm the enhanced and delayed dynamics for the THF and isobutane containing hydrates, respectively, as compared to those in the CO2 hydrate. In addition, from line shape studies and 2D exchange spectroscopy NMR, we observe cage-to-cage exchange of CO2 molecules in the THF-CO2 hydrate, but not in the other hydrates studied. We conclude that the relatively rapid intercage guest dynamics are the result of synergistic guest A-host water-guest B interactions, thus allowing tuning of the guest transport properties in the hydrates by choice of the appropriate guest molecules. Our experimental value for inter-cage hopping is slower by a factor of 10(6) than a published calculated value.

We report a new lattice structure of the ionic clathrate hydrate of tetra-n-butylammonium bromide induced by guest CO2 molecules, which is found to provide high CO2 storage capacity. The structure was characterized by a set of methods, including single crystal X-ray diffraction, NMR, and MD simulations.

Highly strained biarylazacyclooctynone (BARAC) and analogous bioconjugation reagents were shown to undergo novel rearrangement and addition reactions leading to tetracyclic products. This may limit their practical applicability as bioorthogonal reporters for imaging biomolecules within living systems.

One of the best-known uses of methanol is as antifreeze. Methanol is used in large quantities in industrial applications to prevent methane clathrate hydrate blockages from forming in oil and gas pipelines. Methanol is also assigned a major role as antifreeze in giving icy planetary bodies (e.g., Titan) a liquid subsurface ocean and/or an atmosphere containing significant quantities of methane. In this work, we reveal a previously unverified role for methanol as a guest in clathrate hydrate cages. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and NMR experiments showed that at temperatures near 273 K, methanol is incorporated in the hydrate lattice along with other guest molecules. The amount of included methanol depends on the preparative method used. For instance, single-crystal XRD shows that at low temperatures, the methanol molecules are hydrogen-bonded in 4.4% of the small cages of tetrahydrofuran cubic structure II hydrate. At higher temperatures, NMR spectroscopy reveals a number of methanol species incorporated in hydrocarbon hydrate lattices. At temperatures characteristic of icy planetary bodies, vapor deposits of methanol, water, and methane or xenon show that the presence of methanol accelerates hydrate formation on annealing and that there is unusually complex phase behavior as revealed by powder XRD and NMR spectroscopy. The presence of cubic structure I hydrate was confirmed and a unique hydrate phase was postulated to account for the data. Molecular dynamics calculations confirmed the possibility of methanol incorporation into the hydrate lattice and show that methanol can favorably replace a number of methane guests.

There is interest in the role of ammonia on Saturn's moons Titan and Enceladus as the presence of water, methane, and ammonia under temperature and pressure conditions of the surface and interior make these moons rich environments for the study of phases formed by these materials. Ammonia is known to form solid hemi-, mono-, and dihydrate crystal phases under conditions consistent with the surface of Titan and Enceladus, but has also been assigned a role as water-ice antifreeze and methane hydrate inhibitor which is thought to contribute to the outgassing of methane clathrate hydrates into these moons' atmospheres. Here we show, through direct synthesis from solution and vapor deposition experiments under conditions consistent with extraterrestrial planetary atmospheres, that ammonia forms clathrate hydrates and participates synergistically in clathrate hydrate formation in the presence of methane gas at low temperatures. The binary structure II tetrahydrofuran + ammonia, structure I ammonia, and binary structure I ammonia + methane clathrate hydrate phases synthesized have been characterized by X-ray diffraction, molecular dynamics simulation, and Raman spectroscopy methods.

In the title compound, 2C(12)H(10)N(4)·C(32)H(32)O(8), the calixarene adopts a rctt conformation with dihedral angles of 138.40 (1) and 9.10 (1)° between the opposite rings. The dihedral angles between the rings of the pyridine derivative are 8.80 (1) and 9.20 (1)°. In the crystal, adjacent C-methylcalix[4]resorcinarene molecules are connected into columns parallel to [010] by O-H⋯O hydrogen bonds. O-H⋯N hydrogen bonds between the axial phenoxyl groups and bipyridine molecules link the columns into sheets parallel to (011), which are connected by O-H⋯N hydrogen bonds. Further O-H⋯N hydrogen bonds link the bipyridine and C-methylcalix[4]resorcinarene molecules, giving rise to a three-dimensional network.

The asymmetric unit of the title co-crystal, 2CH(6)N(3) (+)·C(6)Cl(2)O(4) (2-), contains one half of a chloranilate anion and one guanidinium cation, which are connected by strong N-H⋯O hydrogen bonds into a two-dimensional network.

The asymmetric unit of the title compound, 2CH(6)N(3) (+)·C(8)N(2)O(4) (2-), contains one half of a centrosymmetric 2,5-di-cyano-3,6-dioxocyclo-hexa-1,4-diene-1,4-diolate (cyananil-ate) anion and one guanidinium cation, which are connected by N-H⋯O and N-H⋯N hydrogen bonds into a three-dimensional network.

Structural determination of crystalline powders, especially those of complex materials, is not a trivial task. For non-stoichiometric guest-host materials, the difficulty lies in how to determine dynamical disorder and partial cage occupancies of the guest molecules without other supporting information or constraints. Here, we show how direct space methods combined with Rietveld analysis can be applied to a class of host-guest materials, in this case the clathrate hydrates. We report crystal structures in the three important hydrate crystal classes, sI, sII, and sH, for the guests CO(2), C(2)H(6), C(3)H(8), and methylcyclohexane + CH(4). The results obtained for powder samples are found to be in good agreement with the experimental data from single crystal X-ray diffraction and (13)C solid-state NMR spectroscopy. This method is also used to determine the guest disorder and cage occupancies of neohexane and tert-butyl methyl ether binary hydrates with CH(4) in the structure H clathrate hydrates. The results are found to be in good agreement with the results from the (13)C solid-state NMR and molecular dynamics simulations. It is demonstrated that the ab initio crystal structure determination methodology reported here is able to determine absolute cage occupancies and the dynamical disorder of guest molecules in clathrate hydrates from powdered crystalline samples.

Coumarin was found to form stable inclusion complexes with cucurbiturils. In the presence of cucurbit[7]uril (CB[7]), 1 : 1 inclusion complexes were observed in aqueous solution, as monitored by (1)H NMR and UV-visible absorption spectroscopies, and further supported by ab initio calculations, whereas with cucurbit[8]uril (CB[8]) a solid phase 1 : 2 host : guest complex was found in a single crystal X-ray diffraction structure determination.

Cucurbit[5]uril hydrochloride hydrate crystals with large water-filled channels transform to a highly stable layer structure via a single-crystal to single-crystal mechanism; (129)Xe NMR showed that porosity in CB[5] samples depends critically on the method of preparation.

We present an X-ray diffraction (XRD) and multi frequency electron spin resonance (ESR) study of the structure and dynamics of an inclusion complex of p-hexanoyl calix[4]arene (C6OH) with 4-methoxy-2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine-N-oxyl (MT). The single crystal XRD experiments reveal that MT along with ethanol (solvent) molecules are entrapped in a capsular type crystalline lattice of the host C6OH material. ESR measurements were performed at 9.2 GHz/0.33 T (X-band) and at 360 GHz/14 T. In order to avoid ESR line broadening resulting from electron dipole-dipole interaction between nitroxides occupying neighbouring capsules in the crystal lattice, the capsules containing nitroxides were separated from each other by capsules containing diamagnetic dibenzylketone (DBK). Due to the extremely high g-tensor resolution of ESR at 360 GHz, we were able to distinguish, by shifts of their gxx component, between encapsulated nitroxide molecules forming a hydrogen bond between their O-(N) group and the OH group of an ethanol molecule occupying the same capsule and nitroxides missing this interaction. Temperature dependent ESR measurements revealed an orientational anisotropy in the motion of MT encapsulated in C6OH. Solid lipid nanoparticles (SLN) prepared from C6OH and loaded with the nitroxide retained the microcrystalline capsular structure of the pertinent inclusion complex. We found that encapsulated MT in SLNs becomes inaccessible to reducing agents such as sodium ascorbate.

The adsorption of CO(2) into the low density form of p-tert-butylcalix[4]arene (tBC) has been studied by (13)C solid state NMR, single crystal X-ray diffraction and volumetric adsorption measurements. The experimental results indicate that tBC and carbon dioxide can form two distinct inclusion compounds. At low loadings the structure of the empty low-density form of the tBC framework (space group P2(1)/n) is preserved with the included CO(2) molecules located within the conical cavities of the tBC molecules. The ideal composition of this form is therefore 1 : 1 (CO(2) : tBC). With higher applied CO(2) pressures the guest loading increases and the structure of the tBC framework transforms to a well studied tetragonal (space group P4/n) form. In this form an additional CO(2) molecule is located on an interstitial site resulting in an ideal composition 2 : 1 (CO(2) : tBC). In agreement with SCXRD and the gas adsorption measurements, (13)C NMR measurements show the change in structure that takes place as a function of sample loading. Inclusion of CO(2) is a rather slow activated process that can be accelerated by increasing the temperature and the transition between crystal forms is inhomogeneous over a bulk sample. After gas release, the empty (or near empty) P4/n structure survives, thus providing another low density phase of tBC. The magnitude and temperature variation of the (13)C chemical shift anisotropy of CO(2) in both low and high occupancy complexes with tBC indicates restricted motion of the CO(2) molecules. The location and dynamics of CO(2) molecules inside the tBC structure are discussed and a motional model for CO(2) is proposed. The CO(2) molecules in the highly loaded compound are shown to exchange rapidly as a single resonance is observed for the two distinct CO(2) molecules.

Metal-organic frameworks have demonstrated functionality stemming from both robustness and pliancy and as such, offer promise for a broad range of new materials. The flexible aspect of some of these solids is intriguing for so-called 'smart' materials in that they could structurally respond to an external stimulus. Herein, we present an open-channel metal-organic framework that, on dehydration, shifts structure to form closed pores in the solid. This occurs through multiple single-crystal-to-single-crystal transformations such that snapshots of the mechanism of solid-state conversion can be obtained. Notably, the gas composing the atmosphere during dehydration becomes trapped in the closed pores. On rehydration, the pores open to release the trapped gas. Thus, this new material represents a thermally robust and porous material that is also capable of dynamically capturing and releasing gas in a controlled manner.

The first capsular crystalline inclusion complex of para-hexanoyl calix[4]arene with stable nitroxyl radical DEPN has been isolated and showed a low mobility of the radical in the capsule.

The structure and dynamics of trimethylene oxide (TMO) and ethylene oxide (EO) structure I (sI) hydrates are reported from single-crystal X-ray diffraction and 2H NMR spectroscopic measurements. The guest molecule positions in the large cage were determined with considerable improvement over previous diffraction work so that a dynamic model that was consistent with these orientations could be developed to explain the 2H NMR data. Reorientations are shown to take place among both symmetry-related and symmetry-independent sites, 16 positions in all. Because of the prochiral nature of the molecules, both guests show 2H NMR line shapes with large asymmetry parameters, rather unusual for guest molecules in the sI hydrate large cage. The results also show that the dipolar axis of the TMO molecule lies close to the 4 bar axis of the cage on average, whereas for EO, this is not the case. For TMO, progressive alignment of the polar axis with decrease of temperature then allows the dipoles to interact more strongly until dipole reversal is quenched at the ordering transition. The lack of ordering of EO is consistent with the much weaker alignment of the molecular dipoles along the 4 bar axis. With the new complementary information on the structure and dynamics from crystallography and NMR, it is possible to understand why the large cage guests order in the large cage of sI hydrate for TMO hydrate but not for EO hydrate.

The thermal treatment of different inclusion complexes of para-octanoyl calix[4]arene leads to the formation of a guest-free van der Waals nanocapsular structure possessing a remarkable stability caused by the high mobility of alkanoyl arms.

Fe(II), Co(II), Ni(II) and Cu(II) complexes based on the triazine ligand 2,4-di(2'-pyridyl)-6-(p-bromo-phenyl)-1,3,5-triazine have been synthesised and characterised. The electrochemical, magnetic and spectroscopic properties of the complexes have also been investigated, and the electron deficient triazine ligand has been shown to affect each of these properties. Further investigation of solid state structures of the ligand and its Fe(II), Co(II) and Cu(II) complexes has established that stabilising Br-Br interactions exist which link neighbouring molecules to form one-dimensional tapes. A slight modification of the ligand, i.e., using 2,4-di(2'-pyridyl)-6-(p-methylphenyl)-1,3,5-triazine, in which the phenyl substituent has changed from a bromine to a methyl group, eliminates the one-dimensional tape and gives rise to significant pi-stacking interactions in the solid state.

The study of solid p-tert-butylcalix[4]arene and its compounds with a variety of techniques has provided a good understanding of the versatility of this host molecule, how to induce a number of distinct host-guest motifs, its molecular recognition properties, the complex phase relationships and unique properties such as gas adsorption without having obvious channels.

4-tert-Butylcalix[4]arene (4tBC4A) is a versatile host capable of forming a variety of 1:1 and 2:1 inclusion compounds typically stabilized through van der Waals interactions. Preliminary studies in our group have demonstrated that inclusion of n-butylamine in 4tBC4A results in a series of pseudopolymorphic inclusion compounds, including a new 3:1 inclusion motif. Using a combination of SCXRD, TGA, solid state NMR, and PXRD, we now elaborate upon the relationship between these pseudopolymorphs. We also demonstrate that larger amines demonstrate a similar degree of pseudopolymorphism, allowing for the production of customized materials using self-assembly guided by competing weak forces. Finally, we comment on the structural implications of the relative dominance such forces in the formation of calixarene-based supramolecular frameworks.

The reactions of Mn2- and Co2-containing micro-PNiPr2 complexes with NCN carbenes afford the 'abnormal' carbene adducts [Mn2(CO)8{mu-P(NiPr2)}(4-cyclo-C3H2-1,3-(NR)2))] and [Co2(CO)4(mu-dppm){mu-P(NiPr2)(4-cyclo-C3H2-1,3-(NR)2)}] (R = tBu, adamantyl), respectively.

We have utilized para-hexanoylcalix[4]arene nanocapsules as hosts to carry out phototransformations of cis- and trans-stilbene. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction studies were performed to define precisely the location of encapsulated stilbenes inside the capsule and to analyze possible pathways of phototransformation. cis-Stilbene stacks as a pi-pi dimer located at the center of the capsule, whereas trans-stilbene does not form such a dimer. Irradiation of the crystalline inclusion complexes of each isomer of stilbene in the solid state leads to the appearance of the second isomer, and after prolonged photolysis, photodimerization also occurs. syn-Tetraphenylcyclobutane is formed as the major product of dimerization and its yield depends on the time and intensity of irradiation. In most cases, the single crystals of the complexes remain intact during irradiation; hence, the nanocapsules have the potential to serve as robust nanoreactors in the solid state. The confinement in the nanocapsules is sufficient to keep the reacting molecules together, although this is less restrictive than for trans-stilbene crystals, in which the molecules cannot achieve a favorable orientation for dimerization.

In an ethanol/water mixture, the nitroxyl radical TEMPO abstracts a hydrogen atom from a phenolic OH group of the amphiphilic para-hexanoylcalix[4]arene, and the hydroxylamine TEMPOH formed yields a stable inclusion complex with another molecule of the calixarene.

The thermally stable, terminal phosphinidene complexes [CpM(CO)2(eta1-PNiPr2)]AlCl4(Cp= Cp, Cp*; M = Fe) and [Cp*M(CO)3(eta1-PNiPr2)]AlCl4 (M = Cr, Mo, W) react with Ph2C=N=N to form terminal P-coordinated eta1-phosphaazine and eta3-diazaphosphaallene ligands, respectively, whereas [CpFe(CO)2(eta1-PNiPr2)]AlCl4 reacts with Me3SiCHN2 affording a terminal phosphorus bound eta1-phosphaalkene complex.

Through hydrogen bonding and secondary coordination, aliphatic amines, together with water and metals, form novel compounds with p-tert-butylcalix[4]arene containing complex clusters and layers.

The bridging phosphinidene complexes [Mn2(CO)8(micro-PNiPr2)] and [Co2(CO)4(micro-dppm)(micro-PNR2)](NR2=NiPr2, TMP) react with heterocumulenes RN3, CH2N2 and Ph2C=N=N to form complexes with micro-eta1,eta2-aminophosphaimine, micro-eta1,eta2-aminophosphaalkene and micro-eta1,eta2-aminophosphadiphenylmethylazaimine ligands, respectively.

The first example of a guest-free crystalline form of tris(5-acetyl-3-thienyl)methane (TATM), in both powder and single crystal form, was obtained by leaching water-soluble guests out of the guest-host inclusion compounds with acetone, ethanol and methanol.

Acid hydrolysis of [Ru(5)(CO)(15)(mu(4)-PN(i)Pr(2))] (2) or protonation of the anionic PO cluster [Ru(5)(CO)(15)(mu(4)-PO)](-) (3) affords the hydroxyphosphinidene complex [Ru(5)(CO)(15)(mu(4)-POH)].1.[H(2)N(i)()Pr(2)][CF(3)SO(3)], which cocrystallizes with a hydrogen-bonded ammonium triflate salt. Reaction of [Ru(5)(CO)(15)(mu(4)-PN(i)Pr(2))] (2) with bis(diphenylphosphino)methane (dppm) leads to [Ru(5)(CO)(13)(mu-dppm)(mu(4)-PN(i)Pr(2))] (4). Acid hydrolysis of 4 leads to the dppm-substituted hydroxyphosphinidene [Ru(5)(CO)(13)(mu-dppm)(mu(4)-POH)] (5), which is analogous to 1, but unlike 1, can be readily isolated as the free hydroxyphosphinidene acid. Compound 5 can also be formed by reaction of 3 with dppm and acid. The cationic hydride cluster [Ru(5)(CO)(13)(mu-dppm)(mu(3)-H)(mu(4)-POH)][CF(3)SO(3)] (6) can be isolated from the same reaction if chromatography is not used. Compound 4 also reacts with HBF(4) to form the fluorophosphinidene cluster [Ru(5)(CO)(13)(mu-dppm)(mu(4)-PF)] (7), while reaction with HCl leads to the mu-chloro, mu(5)-phosphide cluster [Ru(5)(CO)(13)(mu-dppm)(mu-Cl)(mu(5)-P)] (8).

Reaction of [Pt(CH3)2(COD)] (COD = 1,5-cyclooctadiene) with Ph2PCCCCPPh2 led to a mixture of [{Pt(CH3)2}2(mu-Ph2PC4PPh2)2] (1) and [{Pt(CH3)2}3(mu-Ph2PC4PPh2)3] (2). Reaction of [PtCl2(COD)] with Ph2PCCCCPPh2 led to a mixture of the thermally unstable compounds [{PtCl2}2(mu-Ph2PC4PPh2)2] (3) and [{PtCl2}3(mu-Ph2PC4PPh2)3] (4) which transform into [{PtMe2}2{mu-C8(PPh2)4}] (5) and [{PtMe2}3{mu3-C12(PPh2)6}] (6) containing 8-membered diene-diyne and 12-membered triene-triyne rings, respectively. Compound 2 can be converted to [{PtMe2}3{C12(PPh2)6}] (7) by heating with CuCl at 80 degrees C, while 1 can be heated without significant cycloaddition.

Tris(5-acetyl-3-thienyl)methane (TATM), a well known hydrophobic host compound, assembles with water molecules into a material with one-dimensional channels that also contain water.

p-tert-Butylcalix[4]arene guest-host compounds with fluorinated benzenes show several structural motifs, thus indicating that the guest-host structure can be tuned to produce either a form with included guests or a form where the host self-includes with the guests outside the cavity.

Thiocyanate cadmium and methylviologen hybrid host-guest compounds give two novel multiple sandwich architectures with regular or irregular grids of the anionic layer in the structures as effected by the molar ratios of starting ingredients, and show evidence of charge-transfer to the organic dications.

The exact location and orientation of dynamic species in structural studies continues to be a serious challenge, yet it is of paramount importance in modeling guest--host interactions so as to improve our understanding of the multiple weak interactions that govern many chemical and biological processes. The acetone guest in the tBC (p-tert-butylcalixarene) host presents such a challenge, as initial guest positions obtained from single crystal X-ray diffraction (XRD) are incompatible with the 2H NMR spectrum. A detailed consideration of the diffraction data showed that more complicated structural models could be constructed that were consistent with the NMR data and still yielded satisfactory diffraction residuals. These models agree that one acetone methyl group is inserted into the deep cavity, and that it exchanges with the second methyl group outside. The outside methyl group in turn can switch positions with the carbonyl group, but the distribution of the methyl and carbonyl groups over the two sites is not equal. One factor that poses additional difficulty in deciding between models is whether the actual space group is tetragonal (P4/n), or twinned monoclinic (P2/n). All of the structural models considered here disagree substantially with the one proposed in an earlier publication.

The syntheses of two distinctive types of indium complex derived from trimethylindium (InMe(3)) are reported. The first kind has a generalized structural formula [InMe(2)(amak)](2), where (amak)H is an abbreviation for a series of chelating amino alcohol ligands HOC(CF(3))(2)CH(2)NHR, R = (CH(2))(2)OMe (1), Me (2), and Bu(t) (3), as well as HOC(CF(3))(2)CH(2)NMe(2) (4); while the second type of complex is illustrated by [InMe(2)(keim)] (5), for which (keim)H is a tridentate ketoimine ligand of structural formula O=C(CF(3))CH(2)C(CF(3))=NCH(2)CH(2)NMe(2). The solid-state structures of 2 and 5 were determined using single crystal X-ray diffraction studies. For the aminoalkoxide complexes 2-4, the existence of dimeric In(2)O(2) core structures in the solid state has been established with the amino fragment located trans to the alkoxide ligands, in a molecular arrangement which is in contrast to the distorted, trigonal bipyramidal geometry observed for the ketoiminate complex 5. Moreover, VT NMR studies of 2 revealed a rapid dimer-to-monomer equilibration and simultaneous rupture of the N-->In dative interaction, affording two interconvertible isomers related by having the N-Me substituents in either trans or cis dispositions. For complexes 2 and 5, deposition of In(2)O(3) thin films was successfully conducted at temperatures 400-500 degrees C, using O(2) as the carrier gas to induce indium oxide deposition and to suppress carbon impurity present in the thin film. Scanning electron micrographs (SEMs) revealed the surface morphologies. The atomic composition of these films was examined by both X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Rutherford backscattering (RBS) methods, while X-ray diffraction studies (XRD) confirmed the formation of a preferred orientation along the (222) planes.

A single crystal of a low density form of guest-free p-tert-butylcalix[4]arene can take up and release small guest molecules by controlling the temperature and pressure without changing the structure. Using NMR spectroscopy with flowing hyperpolarized xenon, we have shown that at room temperature access of xenon to the pore system is difficult, whereas it is relatively easy at 100 degrees C. There are good prospects for simple van der Waals materials such as the title material to be used as programmable zeolite mimics.

Depending on the details of the technique employed, desolvation of tBC inclusion compounds leads to either a dense, guest-free polymorph, or a guest-free low density polymorph, the latter also having distinct high and low temperature forms.

The terminal chloroaminophosphido complex [Co(CO)3(PPh3){P(Cl)NiPr2}] is formed via reaction of K[Co(CO)4] with iPr2NPCl2 in the presence of triphenylphosphine. Chloride abstraction by aluminum trichloride leads to the first terminal phosphinidene complex of cobalt, [Co(CO)3(PPh3)(PNiPr2)][AlCl4]. The electrophilicity of the phosphinidene was demonstrated by its reaction with diphenylacetylene to form the phosphirene complex [Co(CO)3(PPh3){P(NiPr2)C(Ph)C(Ph)}][AlCl4].

The low-temperature crystal structure of the p-tert-butylcalix[4]arene-toluene inclusion compound, C(44)H(56)O(4) x C(7)H(8), exhibits significant guest-induced distortion of the host calixarene molecule. This distortion persists long enough to establish a correlation in the orientation of guests in adjacent host molecules. Remarkably, the space group and unit cell that best describe the structure appear to depend on the wavelength of the incident radiation. This behaviour appears to arise from spatial averaging over the different scattering volumes required to establish the diffraction peaks.

p-tert-Butylcalix[4]arene forms three compounds with n-butylamine, two weakly interacting guest-host compounds of 1:1 and 1:2 stoichiometry, as well as a hydrogen-bonded 3:1 compound containing some n-butylamine molecules not coordinated to the host.

Reaction of the aminophosphinidene complex [Ru5(CO)15(mu 4-PNPri2)] 1 with [PPN][NO2] (PPN = Ph3P=N=PPh3) led to the mixed nitrosyl/phosphinidene cluster complex [PPN][Ru5(CO)13(mu-NO)(mu 4-PNPri2)] 2 which is transformed into the novel nitrene/phosphinidene cluster [Ru5(CO)10(mu-CO)2(mu 3-CO)(mu 4-NH)(mu 3-PNPri2)] 3 via treatment with triflic acid.

The mixed-metal cluster complexes [Ru(4)(CO)(12)Pt(CO)PPh(3)(mu(4)-PR)] [R = N(i)Pr(2) (1), F (3)] were formed by capping the Ru(3)P face of the nido clusters [Ru(4)(CO)(13)(mu(3)-PR)] with the labile Pt(0) reagent [(eta(2)-C(2)H(4))Pt(PPh(3))(2)]. The aminophosphinidene complex 1 undergoes acid hydrolysis to yield the PO complex [Ru(4)(CO)(12)Pt(CO)PPh(3)(mu(4)-PO)][H(2)N(i)Pr(2)] (4). The fluorophosphinidene cluster 3 reacts with ethanol to form the alkoxyphosphinidene complex [Ru(4)(CO)(12)Pt(CO)PPh(3)(mu(4)-POEt)] (5). Comparison of spectroscopic and structural data for clusters 1, 3, 4, and 5 reveals the remarkable effects of the mu(4)-phosphinidene and phosphorus monoxide ligands on cluster bonding.

The stacking of hydrate cages into channels is effected by the incorporation of polyacrylic acid together with tetra-n-butylammonium hydroxide into a hydrate lattice. The polymer chain (shown in the diagram as large circles) lies in the channel in such a way that some of the carboxy groups displace water molecules from the clathrate framework. The remaining carboxy groups are included in the channel as hydrophobic units without strong directional interactions with the water molecules found there., (© 1999 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH, Weinheim, Fed. Rep. of Germany.)

Interactions between hydrophobic groups in water, as well as biomolecular hydration more generally, are intimately connected to the structure of liquid water around hydrophobic solutes. Such considerations have focused interest on clathrate hydrates: crystals in which a hydrogen-bonded network of water molecules encages hydrophobic guest molecules with which the water interacts only by non-directional van der Waals forces. Three structural families of clathrate hydrates have hitherto been recognized: cubic structure I (2M(S)-6M(L) x 46H2O), cubic structure II (16M(S) x 8M(L)-136H2O) and hexagonal structure H (M(L) x 3M(S) x 2M(S) x 34H2O) hydrates (here M(L) and M(S) are the hydrophobic guest sites associated with large and small cavities, respectively). Here we report a new hydrate structure: 1.67 choline hydroxide-tetra-n-propylammonium fluoride x 30.33H2O. This structure has a number of unusual features; in particular the choline guest exhibits both hydrophobic and hydrophilic modes of hydration. Formally the structure consists of alternating stacks of structure H and structure II hydrates, and might conceivably be found in those settings (such as seafloor deposits over natural-gas fields) in which clathrate hydrates form naturally.