A water-bridged dinuclear complex of cobalt(II), pyridine and stearic acid

In the crystal structure of mu-aqua-1:2 kappa(2)O-tetrapyridine-1 kappa(2)N,2 kappa(2)-N-bis(mu-stearato)- 1 kappa(2)O:2 kappa(2)O'-bis(stearato)-1 kappa O, 2 kappa O-dicobalt (II), [CO2(C18H35O2)(4)(C5H5N)(4)-(H2O), hydrogen bonding [with an O...O distance of 2.564 (5) A] between the H atoms of the bridging water and the non-metal-bonding O atoms of the monodentate stearic acid molecules, stabilizes the dimeric core complex and consequently limits chain packing and conformation options. The structure is a member of a rare class of compounds, the well crystallized metallic salts of long-chain fatty acids. The structure also bears a remarkable similarity to built-up Langmuir-Blodgett films of metal carboxylates.