Uranyl Bearing Hybrid Materials: Synthesis, Speciation, and Solid-State Structures

A study was conducted to demonstrate synthesis, speciation, and formation of solid-state structures of uranyl bearing hybrid materials. Investigations included uranyl hydrolysis, pH influence, building unit selectivity, and efforts to incorporate supramolecular tools to the formation of uranyl hybrids. A hybrid material was defined as a compound that contained inorganic and organic components interacting on a molecular level. An evolutionary approach to the synthesis of uranyl hybrids was presented, which started with arbitrary linker choices and followed with some efforts to influence hydrolysis products and high-halide systems that aimed to switch off hydrolysis and capitalize on supramolecular assembly interactions. The investigations involved a number of recent uranyl-bearing coordination polymers that were specifically selected to highlight overall structural diversity and the variability of uranyl SBUs.