Schiff-Base Podates – X-ray, NMR and Ab Initio Molecular-Orbital Studies of the Cadmium(II) Complexes of Linear and Three-Armed Podands in Solution and Solid State

Cadmium(II) complexes of two Schiff bases, 1,3-di(pyridine-2-carboxaldimino)propane (C15H16N4, L1)[1] and tris[4-(2′-pyridyl)-3-aza-3-butenyl]amine (C24H27N7, L2)[2] are described. An efficient route utilising molecular sieves for the synthesis of Schiff bases is presented. The ligands L1 and L2 can be described as linear and three-armed podands, respectively, L1 being conformationally flexible and L2 preorganised. Cadmium perchlorate in methanol with L1 yields a crystalline complex [Cd(L1)2](ClO4)2 (1), the structure of which was determined by X-ray structure analysis. The complex 1 has an unusual nonsymmetrical 8-coordinated helical structure and crystallizes in an acentric space group (C…