Hydrothermal syntheses and structural characterization of two new supramolecular compounds: (H 2bbi) 2[Mo 8O 26] and (H 2bbi) 2[SiW 12O 40]·2H 2O [bbi = 1,1′-(1,4-butanediyl)bis(imidazole)

Abstract

Two new inorganic–organic hybrid supramolecular compounds based on imidazolium and POMs formulated as (H 2bbi) 2[Mo 8O 26] ( 1) and (H 2bbi) 2[SiW 12O 40]·2H 2O ( 2) [bbi = 1,1′-(1,4-butanediyl)bis(imidazole)] have been prepared under hydrothermal conditions and characterized by elemental analyses, IR and single-crystal X-ray diffraction analyses. The two compounds consist of protonated bbis together with POMs. [Mo 8O 26] 4− and [SiW 12O 40] 4− are linked through H 2bbi into a three-dimensional (3D) network via hydrogen bonds, respectively. Compound 1 is the first example of 3D two-fold interpenetrating hydrogen bond-supported supramolecular assembly from octamolybdate one-dimensional (1D) chain and imidazolium. The fascinating structural feature of compound 2 is that the anions and the protonated bbi ligands formed a 3D (4, 8) supramolecular network by hydrogen bonds. Compound 2 has been used as a solid bulk-modifier to fabricate three-dimensional bulk-modified carbon paste electrode (CPE) by direct mixing. The electrochemical behavior and electrocatalysis of compound 2 modified CPE ( 2-CPE) have been studied.