Hydrogen-bonded network and enforced supramolecular cavities in molecular crystals: An orthogonal aromatic-triad strategy. Guest binding, molecular recognition, and molecular alignment properties of a bisresorcinol derivative of anthracene in the crystalline state

Abstract

Abstract Crystallization of an orthogonal resorcinol-anthracene-resorcinol compound 1a (host) from an ester solvent such as alkyl benzoate (guest) affords a 1:2 host-guest adduct 1a·2(ester). An essential aspect of the crystal structures of ethyl, propyl, and isobutyl benzoate adducts (space group, P21/n) and also that of methyl benzoate adduct (C2/c) is an extensive hydrogen-bonded network of host 1a, leading to a molecular sheet composed of hydrogen-bonded polyresorcinol chains and anthracene columns. This network generates well-defined, cyclophane-like supramolecular cavities, which incorporate two alkyl benzoate molecules in a highly selective manner via a combination of essential host-guest hydrogen-bonding and what may be called the cavity-packing effect. The selectivity factor between methyl benzoate (the lowest-affinity guest) and isobutyl benzoate (the highest-affinity guest) is 1:70 under competitive conditions. The actual geometry of the cavity is somehow dependent on and hence induced-fit adju...