Synthesis and Solid-State Structure of Tetrabutylammonium Imidazolate-Dipyrrole Formed by Self Assembly

The reaction of imidazole with an excess of pyrrole in the presence of tetrabutylammonium hydroxide affords, in high yield by a self-assembly process, tetrabutylammonium imidazolate-dipyrrole, as shown by an X-ray structure analysis. The two pyrroles form hydrogen bonds with the two nitrogen atoms of the imidazole anion, and the tetrabutylammonium counterion also forms hydrogen bonds to the same nitrogen atoms, with the formation of a structurally unique supramolecular compound. ((c) Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2009)