Ivan Pietro Oliveri

Supramolecular aggregation/deaggregation in amphiphilic dipolar Schiff-base zinc(II) complexes.

The synthesis, characterization, optical, and fluorescent properties of an amphiphilic Schiff-base bis(salicylaldiminato)zinc(II) complex are reported. Detailed (1)H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), diffusion-ordered spectroscopy (DOSY) NMR, optical absorption, and fluorescence spectroscopy studies indicate the existence of aggregate species in noncoordinating solvents. The degree and type of aggregation are related to the concentration and the polarity of the noncoordinating solvent. Dilute solutions are likely characterized by the presence of defined dimers, whereas larger oligomeric aggregates are conceivably formed at higher concentrations. The concentration needed to observe the formation of larger species depends upon solvent polarity. In coordinating solvents or in the presence of coordinating species, a complete deaggregation of the system occurs, because of the axial coordination to the Zn(II) ion, accompanied by considerable changes of (1)H NMR and optical absorption spectra. A dramatic enhancement of fluorescence emission is observed in dichloromethane solutions upon deaggregation with a coordinating agent. The formation of a defined 2:1 supramolecular structure is demonstrated in the case of a ditopic ligand as coordinating species. Overall, these complexes are promising systems for the development of new supramolecular architectures and supramolecular fluorescent probes.

Sensitive Fluorescent Detection and Lewis Basicity of Aliphatic Amines

In this contribution is reported the sensitive properties of the Zn(II) Schiff base complex, 1, in dichloromethane with respect a series of primary, secondary, and tertiary aliphatic amines through the study of fluorescence enhancement upon amine coordination to the Lewis acidic Zn(II) metal center with formation of 1:1 adducts. It is found that complex 1 exhibits selectivity and nanomolar sensitivity for primary and alicyclic amines. A distinct selectivity is also observed along the series of secondary or tertiary amines, paralleling the increasing steric hindrance at the nitrogen atom. The binding interaction can be related to the Lewis basicity of the coordinating amine; thus, complex 1 represents a suitable reference Lewis acid, and estimated binding constants within the investigated amine series can be related to their relative Lewis basicity. A relative order of the Lewis basicity can be established for acyclic amines, primary > secondary > tertiary, while an inverted order, tertiary > secondary ≈ primary (acyclic), is found in the case of alicyclic amines. The present approach represents a simple, suitable method to ranking the relative Lewis basicity of aliphatic amines in low-polarity, nonprotogenic solvents.

Phase transition and vapochromism in molecular assemblies of a polymorphic zinc(II) Schiff-base complex.

This paper reports for the first time the irreversible thermally induced phase transition, accompanied by color change, and the vapochromic behavior of an amphiphilic, Lewis acidic Zn(II) Schiff-base complex, through detailed X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetric analysis and differential scanning calorimetry, and optical absorption studies. The unprecedented irreversible phase transition for such kind of complexes is associated with a thermal, lamellar-to-hexagonal columnar structural transition, which involves a different arrangement of each molecular unit within the assembled structure, H- and J-type aggregates, respectively, responsible for the thermochromic behavior. The vapochromism, investigated either in powder samples or in thermally annealed cast films, is related to the formation of 1:1 adducts upon exposure to vapors of strong Lewis bases and implies dramatic optical absorption variations and naked-eye observation of the change in color from red-brown to red. The chemisorption process is fast, completely reversible, reproducible, and selective for amines. The reversible switching of the chemisorption-desorption process in cast films is demonstrated by successive cycles, amine exposure and subsequent heating, by monitoring the substantial optical absorption changes in the visible region. Vapochromism of this material can potentially be used to detect vapors of volatile amines.

New molecular architectures by aggregation of tailored zinc(II) Schiff-base complexes

This contribution reports the synthesis, characterization, 1H NMR, optical absorption and fluorescence properties of a bis(salicylaldiminato)Zinc(II) Schiff base complex, 1, having dipodal, alkyl ammonium bromide derivatized side chains in the salicylidene rings. The comparison of 1H NMR and optical spectroscopic properties of 1 with those of the closely related amphiphilic alkyl derivative allowed getting insights into the nature of species in solutions. Present data suggest the existence of Zn⋯Br interactions, thus avoiding intermolecular Zn⋯O interactions, as usually occur in the absence of other coordinating species. SEM images of samples obtained by drop-casting from dichloromethane solutions of 1 reveal the existence of branched nanostructures, consistent with intermolecular Zn⋯Br interactions. The present approach thus suggests a new method to unique supramolecular architectures for coordination metal complexes.

Low-cost chemiresistive sensor for volatile amines based on a 2D network of a zinc(II) Schiff-base complex

A marked chemiresistive behavior is revealed in a nanostructured material obtained by spin-coating a solution of a bis(salycilaldiminato)Zn(II) Schiff-base (ZnSB) complex. The resulting submicron 2D network exhibits reversible changes in absorbance and resistance under the cycles of absorption and desorption of a volatile amine. These results are explained in terms of a Lewis donor-acceptor interaction between the ZnSB (acceptor) and the chemisorbed amine (donor). The 2D network of ZnSB was employed as a sensing element to fabricate a low-cost device for the volatile amines detection, showing promising results for food spoilage detection.

Aggregates of Defined Stereochemical Scaffolds: A Study in Solution of a Zinc(II) Schiff Base Complex Derived from the Enantiopure trans-1,2-Cyclopentanediamine

Molecular aggregation of bis(salicylaldiminato) ZnII Schiff base, ZnL, complexes is a topic of current interest. In this paper, we report a novel complex derived from the enantiopure trans-1,2-cyclopentanediamine, (R)-1, in order to probe the effect of the defined stereochemistry on its coordination geometry and aggregation properties, through detailed 1H NMR, DOSY NMR, UV/vis, and circular dichroism spectroscopic studies and accurate DFT calculations. This complex shows several peculiarities in solution, behaving very differently from ZnL complexes and more importantly from the related trans-1,2-diaminocyclohexane derivative. Unexpectedly, experimental data suggest the existence in DMSO of two species in equilibrium, the classical monomeric adduct and a dimer, indicating that the DMSO is not sufficiently strong Lewis basic to completely deaggregate the complex. Also, in chloroform an unusual behavior is observed with the existence of a single defined dimeric species characterized as a dinuclear double helicate Zn2L2 structure which does not deaggregate even with the addition of pyridine in large stoichiometric excess. The formation of mononuclear adducts occurs only when dissolving the complex in the stronger Lewis base pyridine. All these data indicate the helicate (R)-1-h complex has a higher thermodynamic stability than that of the cyclohexane analogue, leading to its unique aggregation properties.

Vapochromic and chemiresistive characteristics of a nanostructured molecular material of a zinc(II)-salophen complex

The vapochromic and chemiresistive properties of a nanofibrillar molecular material composed of an amphiphilic ZnII Schiff-base complex, 1, are explored with the aim to obtain new materials with multifunctional properties. The solid 1 is characterized by the existence of two stable dimorphs, both exhibiting a nanofibrillar morphology. The thermal annealing of the ground solid 1 induces an irreversible lamellar-to-square columnar structural phase transition, as assessed by differential scanning calorimetry and X-ray diffraction analysis. When exposed to vapours of a Lewis base, spin coated films of the square columnar dimorph exhibit a marked change of both the optical absorption spectrum and the resistance, because of chemisorption of the Lewis base with the formation of 1·Lewis base adducts. The chemisorbed material is easily restored by thermal heating (150 °C), inducing desorption of the Lewis base. The changes of the properties are reproducible in successive cycles of exposure/restoring. Therefore, the present contribution provides new insights into the properties of this molecular material, potentially useful as a sensor for volatile organic Lewis bases.