Mechanochemical reactivity of Square-Planar Nickel Complexes and Pyridyl-Based Spacers for the solid-state preparation of coordination polymers: The case of Nickel Diethyldithiophosphate and 4,4′-Bipyridine

The mechanochemical synthesis of a coordination polymer from a preformed metal coordination complex and a pyridyl-based spacer has been successfully performed. The coordination polymer (1 L)∞ was obtained rapidly from the reaction of the neutral square-planar complex [{(EtO)2PS2}2Ni] (1) and 4,4'-bipyridine (L) at room temperature through two different mechanochemical approaches (neat grinding and liquid-assisted grinding). The products were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, IR spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, thermogravimetry and differential scanning calorimetry techniques. In parallel (1 L)∞ was prepared by conventional solvent-based methods, and the X-ray crystal structure of the polymer, obtained as single crystals, was compared with that from the mechanochemical preparation.