Abstract
This work contributes to enlightening the opportunities of the anisotropic scheme of non-covalent interactions present in supramolecular materials. It provides a top-down approach based on their selective disruption that herein has been employed to process a conventional microcrystalline material to a nanofibrillar porous material. The developed bulk microcrystalline material contains uracil-1-propionic acid (UPrOH) nucleobase as a molecular recognition capable building block. Its crystal structure consists of discrete [Cu(UPrO)2 (4,4′-bipy)2 (H2 O)] (4,4′-bipy=4,4′-bipyridine) entities held together through a highly anisotropic scheme of non-covalent interactions in which strong hydrogen bonds involving coordinated water molecules provide 1D supramolecular chains interacting between them by weaker interactions. The sonication of this microcrystalline material and heating at 45 °C in acetic acid–methanol allows partial reversible solubilization/recrystallization processes that promote the cross-linking of particles into an interlocked platelet-like micro-particles metal–organic gel, but during CO2 supercritical drying, the microcrystalline particles undergo a complete morphological change towards highly anisotropic nanofibers. This unprecedented top-down microstructural conversion provides a nanofibrillar material bearing the same crystal structure but with a highly increased surface area. Its usefulness has been tested for HPLC separation purposes observing the expected nucleobase complementarity-based separation.
Highlights
IntroductionCoordination complexes and polymers (CCs and CPs) are fascinating compounds formed by the combination of different building blocks through coordination bonds, mainly metal ions and organic molecules [1,2]
The building blocks, structure, and morphology mark the final properties of the obtained compounds [3,4,5,6,7]
The incorporation in the CPs or CCs of organic ligands with molecular recognition abilities allows the design of 3D networks to be based on coordination bonds and using weaker supramolecular interactions such as hydrogen bonds or van der Waals [8,9,10,11]
Summary
Coordination complexes and polymers (CCs and CPs) are fascinating compounds formed by the combination of different building blocks through coordination bonds, mainly metal ions and organic molecules [1,2]. The building blocks, structure, and morphology mark the final properties of the obtained compounds [3,4,5,6,7]. The incorporation in the CPs or CCs of organic ligands with molecular recognition abilities allows the design of 3D networks to be based on coordination bonds and using weaker supramolecular interactions such as hydrogen bonds or van der Waals [8,9,10,11].
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
