Publication PulSAr - Chem Eur J, sept. 2021

The September 15, 2021

Nouvel article de revue de l'équipe PulSAr dans Chemistry—A European Journal:

Reversible pH-Controlled Catenation of a Benzobisimidazole-Based Tetranuclear Rectangle.

Maksym Dekhtiarenko, Simon Pascal, Mourad Elhabiri, Valerie Mazan, David Canevet, Magali Allain, Vincent Carré, Frédéric Aubriet, Zoia Voitenko, Marc Sallé, Olivier Siri, Sébastien Goeb

Abstract

The development of methodologies to control on demand and reversibly supramolecular transformations from self-assembled metalla-structures requires the rational design of architectures able to answer to an applied stimulus. While solvent or concentration changes, light exposure or addition of a chemical have been largely explored to provide these transformations, the case of pH sensitive materials is less described. Herein, we report the first example of a pH-triggered dissociation of a coordination-driven self-assembled interlocked molecular link. It incorporates a pH sensitive benzobisimidazole-based ligand that can be selectively protonated on its bisimidazole moieties. This generates intermolecular electrostatic repulsions that reduces drastically the stability of the interlocked structure, leading to its dissociation without any sign of protonation of the pyridine moieties involved in the coordination bonds. Importantly, the dissociation process is reversible through addition of a base.

DOI: 10.1002/chem.202103039