Thermally Stable Intermolecular Proton Bonds in Polyaromatic Aldehyde Crystals

We have synthesized self-assembled red-colored proton complexes of the aldehyde derivatives of polyaromatic hydrocarbon with strong intermolecular hydrogen bonding. These intermolecularly proton-bonded polyaromatic aldehydes formed as 1-pyrene-carbaldehyde (Py-CHO) reacted with HAuCl4 to produce [(Py-CHO)(2)H]-[AuCl4] under dry conditions. The formation of [(Py-CHO)(2)H][AuCl4] was confirmed by single-crystal structure determination and IR spectral analysis at various temperatures. The compounds are distinctively hydrophobic in nature and are soluble only in a few organic polar solvents. The proton bonds are clearly observed from both the electron density in X-ray analysis and the characteristic IR frequency signature. The proton complex units have an O-H+-O distance of the typical Zundel-like cationic hydrogen bond (in which two O atoms share a proton-like H in the midpoint of the short O-O distance of approximate to 2.4 angstrom). The proton bonds are thermally stable, even over 100 degrees C, because the complexes are stabilized in layered structures with pi-pi intermolecular interactions of the polyaromatic hydrocarbon ligands. The IR signatures at around 900, 1200, and 1700 cm(-1) for the Zundel-like proton bond are clearly characterized.