Anion dependent water clusters encapsulated inside a cryptand cavity

A series of water clusters encapsulated inside a cryptand cavity were obtained in the cryptand-acid supramolecular adducts of [(H2O)(2)subset of(H6L)][H2PO4](6)(H2O)(3) (1 center dot 3H(2)O), [(H2O)(3)subset of(H6L)][H2PO4](6)(H2O)(11) (2 center dot 11H(2)O), [(H2O)(3)subset of(H6L)][CH3(C(6)H(4-)p)SO3](6)(H2O)(4) (3 center dot 4H(2)O), and [(H2O)(6)subset of(H6L)][SO4](3)(H2O)(13) (4 center dot 13H(2)O) (L = N[(CH2)(2)NHCH2(C6H4-p)CH2NH(CH2)(2)](3)N). In 1 and 2, H6L6+ is hydrogen bonded to six H2PO4- through its protonated nitrogen atoms to form two (O center dot center dot center dot H-N-H center dot center dot center dot)3 rings at two poles of H6L6+. A well encapsulated water dimer, and a circle- and cage-shaped trimer of [H2PO4](3) are formed in 1. A well encapsulated circular water trimer and a bowl-shaped trimer of [H2PO4](3) are formed in 2. In 3, the steric effect of the tolyl group of (CH3(C6H4-p)SO3](-) causes a change in the conformation of H6L6+ to generate a favorable environment for a linear water trimer inside the crystand cavity. In 4, H6L6+ bonds three SO42- anions through the protonated nitrogen atoms at the one pole, and a quasi-prismatic hexamer water cluster is formed inside the cryptand cavity.