Anion and ion-pair binding by a G-2 poly(ethylene imine) dendrimer

Dalton Trans. 2013 Sep 14;42(34):12130-8. doi: 10.1039/c3dt32926g. Epub 2013 Mar 28.

Abstract

The second-generation poly(ethylene imine) dendrimer (L), based on ammonia as the initiating core molecule, forms anion and ion-pair complexes in aqueous solution. Speciation of the complex species formed and determination of the relevant stability constants were performed by means of potentiometric titration in a 0.10 M NMe4Cl solution at 298.1 K. Protonated forms of L interact with NO3(-), SO4(2-), SeO4(2-), HPO4(2-) and H2PO4(-) forming stable 1 : 1 anion complexes. The dendritic structure endows the molecule with a greater anion binding ability relative to analogous linear polyamines. It was previously reported that L forms stable metal complexes. We show here that protonated forms of the mononuclear complexes with Cu(2+), Zn(2+) and Cd(2+) bind these anions, and Pb(2+) complexes bind NO3(-). The resulting ion-pair complexes show considerable stability thanks to the cooperative effect of the oppositely charged partners. Molecular modelling calculations show that both anion-ligand and anion-metal ion interactions can participate in stabilizing such ion-pair complexes.

MeSH terms

  • Ammonia / chemistry
  • Anions / chemistry
  • Dendrimers / chemistry*
  • Imines / chemistry*
  • Ligands
  • Polyethylenes / chemistry*

Substances

  • Anions
  • Dendrimers
  • Imines
  • Ligands
  • Polyethylenes
  • poly(ethylene imine)
  • Ammonia