Reactions of NiCl2·6H2O and pyridin-2-one (C5H5NO = Hhp) afforded novel molecular complexes, i.e., mononuclear [NiCl2(Hhp)4] (1), dinuclear [NiCl2(Hhp)(H2O)2]2.2Hhp (3) and [Ni2Cl4(Hhp)5]·2MeCN (4), and an ionic complex [Ni(Hhp)6]Cl2 (2). Single-crystal X-ray analyses revealed two modes of Hhp ligation in these complexes: a monodentate coordination of carbonyl oxygen in all of them and an additional µ2-oxygen bridging coordination in the dinuclear complex 4. Three bridging molecules of Hhp span two nickel(II) ions in 4 with a 2.9802 (5) Å separation of the metal ions. Complex 3 is a chlorido-bridged nickel dimer with a planar Ni2(µ-Cl)2 framework. Hydrogen bonds and parallel stacking arrangements of the Hhp molecules govern the connectivity patterns in the crystals, resulting in 1D structures in 1 and 5 or 2D in 3. A single manganese compound [MnCl2(Hhp)4] (5), isostructural to 1, was isolated under the similar conditions. This is in contrast to four nickel(II) chloride complexes with Hhp. Thermal analyses proved the stability of complexes 1 and 3 in argon up to 145 °C and 100 °C, respectively. The decomposition of 1 and 3 yielded nickel in argon and nickel(II) oxide in air at 800 °C.
Well-defined molecular uranium(iii) chloride complexes
