Nonporous Organic Solids Capable of Dynamically Resolving Mixtures of Diiodoperfluoroalkanes

Halogen bonding has increasingly facilitated the assembly of diverse host-guest solids. Here, we show that a well-known class of organic salts, bis(trimethylammonium) alkane diiodides, can reversibly encapsulate α,ω-diiodoperfluoroalkanes (DIPFAs) through intermolecular interactions between the host's I – anions and the guest's terminal iodine substituents. The process is highly selective for the fluorocarbon that forms an I – ···I(CF 2 ) m I···I – superanion that is matched in length to the chosen dication. DIPFAs that are 2 to 12 carbons in length (common industrial intermediates) can thereby be isolated from mixtures by means of crystallization from solution upon addition of the dissolv…