Complexes of Eu(III), Tb(III) and Cu(II) with proton transfer compound between 2,6-pyridinedicarboxylic acid and 2-aminobenzothiazole: characterization of the structures and physical properties

Abstract

A proton transfer compound, (ABTH)⁺(PydcH)⁻ (1), obtained from 2-aminobenzothiazole (ABT) and 2,6-pyridinedicarboxylic acid (Pydc) as well as its Eu(III), Tb(III), and Cu(II) complexes (ABT)₃[Eu(Pydc)₃]·5H₂O (2), (ABT)₃[Tb(Pydc)₃]·5H₂O (3), and (ABT)[Cu(Pydc)(PydcH)]·3H₂O (4) were obtained under ambient conditions and structurally verified by single-crystal X-ray diffraction analyses and further characterized by elemental analyses, powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD), infrared spectroscopy (IR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and magnetic measurements. Compounds 2–4 are the first known solids containing complex anions with Pydc ligands, 2-aminobenzothiazole cations (ABT), and solvate water molecules. During the synthesis of 3, a secondary phase with the formula ABTCl∙H₂O was obtained and characterized by elemental analysis and single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The asymmetric unit of 5 consists of six symmetry independent ABT cations, six chlorides, and six water molecules. The two lanthanide complexes showed characteristic emissions of Eu³⁺ and Tb³⁺ ions. The good solubilities of these complexes in water and their luminescence properties make them attractive luminescent labels of biological molecules.

Keywords:

• Lanthanides
• 2,6-pyridinedicarboxylic acid
• 2-aminobenzothiazole
• proton transfer
• X-ray crystal structure

Acknowledgements

We gratefully acknowledge the financial support from the Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology of the Republic of Slovenia. We also thank the EN-FIST Centre of Excellence (Ljubljana, Slovenia) for the use of the SuperNova diffractometer.

Funding

This work was supported by the Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology of the Republic of Slovenia.