One- and two-dimensional polymers from proline and calcium bromide
Reactions of calcium bromide with enantiopure and racemic proline in aqueous solution lead to two solids in which the zwitterionic amino acid acts as a bridging ligand between neighbouring cations. Depending on the chirality of the amino acid, topologically very different products are obtained. With racemic proline, bromide acts as a simple uncoordinated counter-anion for the cationic heterochiral chains incatena-poly[[aquacalcium(II)]-μ-aqua-μ3-DL-proline-μ2-DL-proline], {[Ca(C5H9NO2)2(H2O)2]Br2}n. In agreement with chemical intuition, only carboxylate and aqua O atoms coordinate the alkaline earth cation in a low-symmetry arrangement. In contrast, L-proline affords the two-dimensional network poly[dibromidobis(μ2-L-proline)calcium(II)], [CaBr2(C5H9NO2)2]n, with an unexpected CaBr2unit in a more regular coordination sphere.