Simultaneous presence of both open metal sites and free functional organic sites in a noncentrosymmetric dynamic metal-organic framework with bimodal catalytic and sensing activities

Abstract

Assimilation of open metal sites (OMSs) and free functional organic sites (FOSs) with a framework strut has opened up a new route for the fabrication of novel metal-organic materials, thereby providing a unique opportunity to explore their multiple functionalities. A new metal-organic framework (MOF), {[Cu(ina)2(H2O)][Cu(ina)2(bipy)]·2H2O}n (1) (ina=isonicotinate, bipy=4,4'-bipyridine), has been synthesized and characterized. Complex 1 is crystallized in the orthorhombic noncentrosymmetric space group Aba2 and consists of two different 2D coordination polymers, [Cu(ina)2(H2O)]n and [Cu(ina)2(bipy)]n, with entrapped solvent water molecules. Hydrogen-bonding interactions assemble these two different 2D coordination layers in a single-crystal structure with interdigitation of pendant 4,4'-bipy from one layer into the groove of another. Upon removal of guest molecules, 1 undergoes a structural transformation in single-crystal-to-single-crystal fashion with expansion of the effective void space. Each metal center is five-coordinated and thus can potentially behave as an OMS, and the free pyridyl groups of pendant 4,4'-bipy moieties and free -C=O groups can act as free FOSs. Thus, owing to presence of both OMSs and free FOSs, the framework exhibits multifunctional properties. Owing to the presence of OMSs, the framework can act as a Lewis acid catalyst as well as a small-molecule sensor material, and in a similar way, owing to the presence of free FOSs, it performs as a Lewis base catalyst and a cation sensor material. Furthermore, owing to noncentrosymmetry with large polarity along a particular direction, it shows strong second-harmonic generation/nonlinear optical (SHG-NLO) activity.

Keywords: Lewis acids; Lewis bases; catalysis; metal-organic frameworks; sensors.