JACQUES POITRAS, MARTIN LEDUC, and ANDRE L. BEAUCHAMP. Can. J. Chem. 71, 549 (1993).Dark-red crystals of (H,a~a)~[Cu~Cl,,(H,0)~]Cl were obtained by addition of HC1 to equimola~ amounts of 7-azaindole (Haza) and CuC12. 2H,O in methanol. They were shown by X-ray diffraction (triclinic, P1, a = 9.396(1), b = 9.894(1), c = 15.958(1), A, a = 106.10(1)", (3 = 98.25(1)', y = 105.56(1)0,' Z = 1, R = 0.031) to contain infinite chains in which the basic [ C U~C~, , ( H~O )~] ' pattern is built up from ti-an~-CuCl~(H,O)~, [CuC13(H,0)]-, and dichlorobridged [cu,c~,]' species. In the idealized chain, these units occur in the 1 :2: 1 ratio, but disorder is present and some of the C U C~~( H~O )~ units are randomly replaced by [CuC13(H,0)]-. The Cu atoms have a roughly square-planar primary coordination, and connection along the chain is achieved by weaker apical Cu-CI bridging interactions. All azaindole molecules are present as uncoordinated N7-protonated monocations. A related (H2aza)3[Cu3Cl,(H20)3]Cl salt was obtained as a side-product of the reaction of 7-azaindole with excess CuCl,. 2H20 in methanol without acid. In these brown crystals (triclinic, P I , a = 9.308(1), b = 9.964(1), c = 19.212(4) A, a = 76.67(1)", P = 79.35(1)", y = 75.27(1)", Z = 2, R = 0.046), the [Cu6~1,,(H20)6]'-pattern of the chain contains the same three building units as above, but in the 2:2: 1 ratio. In both salts, the polymeric chloro-copper chains are parallel and separated by azaindolium cations stacked along the same direction. The structures are stabilized by networks of hydrogen bonds involving the azaindolium cations, the chlorine atoms, and water molecules in the chloro-copper chain, and a noncoordinated C1-ion. Most of the azaindolium cations are disordered. The influence of N7-protonation on the infrared spectrum of azaindole is discussed. La plupart des cations azaindolium sont dCsordonnCs. L'influence de la protonation en N7 sur le spectre infrarouge de l'azaindole est discutCe.
IntroductionIn many of the complexes of 7-azaindole (Haza, Scheme 1) reported so far, the ligand monoanion plays a bridging role rn "7 PI similar to that of carboxylates in stabilizing dinuclear units.
HFor instance, copper(I1) azaindolate has been found to con-SCHEME 1 tain discrete Cu,(aza), dimeric units with the "windmill" tetra(azaindolate)dimetal structure of cop~er(II) acetate (1).azaindole with copper(I1) chloride in methanol, under con-A similar bridging role has been observed in compounds with ditions that favored ligand binding in the neutral form. To several other metals (2-4). As Yet, midentate binding of the complete our survey of the CuC1,-azaindole system, some anionic form has been observed only in the [CH,Hg(aza)l experiments were run in slightly acidic solution, conditions molecule, which was recently s h~w n to exist as an N lthat were known to lead to N7-protonated azaindolium salts bonded monomer (4-6). Because azaindole is a much weaker with ZnC1, (7). This was intended to yield salts of simple acid, adduct formation with the neutral mol...