Symmetry versus minimal pentagonal adjacencies in uranium-based polyoxometalate fullerene topologies.

Abstract

C U soon: Clusters containing 60, 44, and 36 uranyl peroxide hydroxide polyhedra (see picture) adopt fullerene topologies of maximum symmetry. The largest of these, denoted U60, is topologically identical to C(60) with no pentagonal adjacencies and the highest possible symmetry. U44 adopts the topology with maximum symmetry rather than that with the lowest number of pentagonal adjacencies.

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Polyoxometalates
DOI: 10.1002/anie.200805870
Symmetry versus Minimal Pentagonal Adjacencies in Uranium-Based
Polyoxometalate Fullerene Topologies**
Ginger E. Sigmon, Daniel K. Unruh, Jie Ling, Brittany Weaver, Matthew Ward,
Laura Pressprich, Antonio Simonetti, and Peter C. Burns*
Polyoxometalates are centuries old,[1]and Keggin established
the first structure of a heteropolyoxometalate compound in
1933.[2]Actinides have recently been incorporated into
polyoxometalates of transition metals,[3–7]but only three
studies report actinide-based polyoxometalate clusters.[8–10]
Yet actinides are ideal candidates for self-assembly into
clusters that may possess interesting properties associated
with the complexity of the f electrons, and such clusters could
be useful in the nuclear fuel cycle. Duval et al.[9]reported a
cluster with a polyoxometalate core containing six uranium
atoms, and we recently described clusters of uranyl peroxide
hydroxide isopolyhedra, consisting of 24, 28, 32,[8]40, and
50[10]polyhedra. Uranyl peroxide clusters self-assemble in
alkaline solutions under ambient conditions and provide a
glimpse into a potentially large and complex family of
polyoxometalates.
Clusters with fullerene topologies such as C60exhibit
striking symmetric beauty and important properties.[11]Ful-
lerenes consist of 12 topological pentagons and at least two
hexagons. Topological pentagons placed in a sheet of
hexagons create curvature, with twelve such units required
to close the topology into a cluster.[12]Over the past decade,
analogues of C60 fullerene have been postulated, such as
fullerene-like molecules of silicon atoms and mixtures of
Group 13 and Group 15 elements, although confirmation by
experiment is lacking.[13–15]Several inorganic fullerene-like
cages have been synthesized using solid-state techniques.
Zintl phases have produced a C60-like moiety in In48Na12,[16]
and transition-metal phases with spherical fullerene-like
molecules have been synthesized using iron and copper.[17]
Superfullerene species have been reported that contain 132
molybdenum atoms.[18]
Curvature in a fullerene structure relates to the distribu-
tion of pentagons in its topology.[12]Adjacent pentagons
increase local curvature. For carbon, increased curvature
results in strain by decreasing orbital overlap.[12]No fullerene
topology exists without adjacent pentagons and with less than
60 vertices. Only one fullerene structure with 60 vertices and
no adjacent pentagons is possible, and it is adopted by C60
because it results in the most favorable orbital overlap. In
carbon fullerenes with less than 60 vertices, those with the
minimum number of adjacent pentagons are expected to be
the most stable.[19]
The emerging structural complexities of uranyl peroxide
clusters suggest the possibility of creating large fullerene-
topology clusters with high stability. This prospect provides
the impetus for a combinatorial approach to exploring the
uranyl peroxide system. Subtle changes in growth conditions
are known to result in different structures in this system.[8,10]
Clustersof composition
formed when uranyl nitrate, hydrogen peroxide, potassium
chloride, and lithium hydroxide were combined in aqueous
solution at pH 9.0. Well-faceted millimeter-sized crystals with
approximate composition Li48+mK12(OH)m[UO2(O2)(OH)]60-
(H2O)n(m?20 and n?310, see the Supporting Information)
containing these clusters formed within seven days. Single-
crystal X-ray diffraction gave the cubic space group Fm3¯and
resolved the atomic positions of the uranyl peroxide poly-
hedra and potassium cations. The cluster is nearly spherical,
with an outer diameter of 24.3 ?, measured from the centers
of oxygen atoms on either side (Figure 1a).
U60 consists of sixty compositionally identical uranyl
peroxide hydroxide polyhedra (Figure 1a–c). Each has an
[UO2(O2)(OH)]60
60?
(U60)
Figure 1. Representations of the uranyl peroxide components of the
structures of U60 (a–c), U36 (d–f), and U44 (g–i). Ball-and-stick (left)
and polyhedral (center) representations are complemented by graphs
showing the cluster topologies (right).
[*] G. E. Sigmon, D. K. Unruh, J. Ling, B. Weaver, M. Ward,
L. Pressprich, Prof. A. Simonetti, Prof. P. C. Burns
Department of Civil Engineering and Geological Sciences
University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556 (USA)
E-mail: pburns@nd.edu
Homepage: http://petercburns.com
Prof. P. C. Burns
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556 (USA)
[**] This research was supported by the Chemical Sciences, Geo-
sciences and Biosciences Division, Office of Basic Energy Sciences,
Office of Science, U.S. Department of Energy, Grant No. DE-FG02-
07ER15880.
Supporting information for this article is available on the WWW
under http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/anie.200805870.
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approximately linear (UO2)2+uranyl ion that is coordinated
by two peroxide groups positioned along equatorial edges of a
hexagonal bipyramid and by two hydroxy groups that define a
third edge of the bipyramid. These polyhedra are linked by
shared edges defined by the two peroxide groups and the edge
formed by the two hydroxy groups. A graph representing U60
is shown in Figure 1c, where vertices represent uranyl
polyhedra and lines connecting vertices correspond to
shared edges between polyhedra. There are 60 vertices, 12
pentagons, and 20 hexagons that form an exact truncated
icosahedron. The structure of U60 is topologically identical to
C60.
Synthesis of U60 clusters was readily repeated, but
omission of either lithium or potassium from the aqueous
solution, or performing the reaction at pH>9, yielded
clusters with different (smaller) topologies, or no crystals
suitable for X-ray diffraction were recovered. The crystallo-
graphic data indicate that potassium ions are located inside
the U60 cluster, adjacent to pentagons in the structure.
The uranyl peroxide portion of the U60 cluster has a net
charge of ?60. Within the bond-valence formalism,[20,21]the
uranyl peroxide portion of the cluster should form bonds
extending to other parts of the structure totaling one valence
unit per polyhedron. The oxygen atoms of the uranyl ions may
form bonds totaling as much as 0.5 valence units each, and
their orientation indicates that half of this bond valence will
be distributed to constituents inside the cluster, and the
remainder will be incident upon constituents outside the
cluster. Hydrogen bonds associated with the sixty hydroxy
groups in the polyhedra may extend to anions either inside or
outside the cluster.
Sixty oxygen atoms of uranyl ions (OUr) occur on the
inside of the U60 cluster, where each is bonded to one
potassium cation with a bond strength of roughly 0.2 valence
units. The potassium cations are located below the centers of
the pentagons in the cluster topology and are bonded to five
oxygen atoms of uranyl ions, giving a pyramidal coordination
with bond lengths ranging from 2.84(2) to 2.87(2) ?. Differ-
ence Fourier maps revealed electron density both inside the
cluster and between adjacent clusters at a level consistent
with disordered oxygen and lithium atoms. The most likely
location of lithium cations within the cluster is below the
hexagonal rings of the topology, where they would bridge
between two OUranions that belong to adjacent uranyl ions in
the ring and would bond to two H2O groups located inside the
U60 cluster, resulting in a tetrahedral coordination environ-
ment about the lithium cations (Figure 2). It is unlikely that
more than one lithium cation will bond to any given OUratom,
as together with the existing bond to a potassium cation, this
would result in overbonding. As many as three lithium cations
could occur associated with a hexagon in the topology, but in
this case sites in adjacent hexagons would have no associated
lithium cations. Lithium cations associated with a given
hexagon in the topology could be present in different
configurations. These observations may explain the disorder
of the electron density within the cluster, and available sites
could accommodate as many as 30 lithium cations. Together
with the potassium cations, as many as 42 positive charges
could occur within the cluster, thus reducing the net charge of
the cluster to ?18, which must then be balanced by cations
located outside the clusters.
Clusters of composition [(UO2)36(O2)41(OH)26]36?were
obtained from an aqueous solution of uranyl nitrate, hydro-
gen peroxide, and lithium hydroxide at pH?12.5. The
crystals containing these structures have the approximate
composition Li36[(UO2)36(O2)41(OH)26](H2O)y(see the Sup-
porting Information). The clusters consist of 36 uranyl
polyhedra(U36),of which
(UO2)(O2)3and 26 are (UO2)(O2)2(OH)2(Figure 1d–f). The
fullerene topology contains twelve pentagons and eight
hexagons (Figure 1 f). All pentagons in the topology share
two of their edges with adjacent pentagons. There are fifteen
fullerene isomers with 36 vertices,[12]and the topology
adopted by U36 has the fewest pentagonal adjacencies. U36
is notably the first cluster that contains two types of uranyl
peroxide polyhedra. It is oblong, with outer diameters of 18.5
and 17.7 ? (length and width), measured from the centers of
bounding oxygen atoms.
Clusters containing 44 (UO2)(O2)3polyhedra with com-
position [(UO2)(O2)1.5]44
aqueous solution containing uranyl nitrate, hydrogen perox-
ide, potassium bisulfate, and sodium hydroxide. Crystals
containing these clusters have the approximate composition
(K,Na)44[(UO2)(O2)1.5]44(H2O)x(see the Supporting Informa-
tion). These peanut-shaped (Figure 1g–i) fullerene-topology
clusters each contain twelve pentagons and twelve hexagons,
and they have diameters of 26.8 and 17.8 ? (length and
width), measured from the centers of bounding OUratoms.
There are 89 fullerene topologies containing 44 vertices,[12]
and that with the fewest pentagonal adjacencies has eight
pentagons that share a single edge with another pentagon and
four that share two edges with other pentagons. U44 does not
adopt the topology with the fewest pentagonal adjacencies
(Figure 1i). It has D3dsymmetry and contains six pentagons
that share one of their edges with another pentagon and six
that share three of their edges with other pentagons.
The U44 cluster contains partially disordered sites that are
occupied by potassium and sodium ions and H2O. Additional
sodium and H2O sites are located between adjacent clusters.
The sodium and potassium cations inside the clusters are
below the centers of the pentagons in the topology, where
they each link to five OUratoms. H2O molecules are located
below the centers of hexagons of the topology, where they are
presumably held by hydrogen bonds.
tenhave composition
44?(U44) were crystallized from an
Figure 2. Possible lithium positions in U60. K black, Li blue, H2O red.
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With the report of U36, U44, and U60 clusters, five uranyl
peroxide clusters are known to have fullerene topologies.
U28, U36, U44, U50, and U60 adopt topologies with ideal
symmetries Td, D6h, D3d, D5h, and Oh, respectively. In the case
of carbon, fullerene topologies with no or minimal pentagonal
adjacencies are favored, probably because of orbital overlap
considerations. In uranyl peroxide fullerenes, the polyhedra
are “hinged” by polyhedral edges defined by peroxide or by
two hydroxy groups. Interactions between the U6+ion of the
uranyl ion and the equatorial peroxide and hydroxy ligands
are expected to be mostly ionic; as such, the U-Operoxide-U and
U-OH-U bond angles are pliable, and there appears to be no
reason based on bonding arguments to expect adjacent
pentagons in these topologies to be destabilizing relative to
shared edges between hexagons and pentagons.
Cluster symmetry appears to be an important factor in
determining the topology of a uranyl peroxide fullerene
cluster. Species U28, U36, U50, and U60 all adopt the
corresponding fullerene topology with the fewest pentagonal
adjacencies, or, in the case of U60, the one of 1812 topologies
with no pentagonal adjacencies. This result suggests that
pentagonal adjacencies are a factor in uranyl peroxide
fullerene topologies. However, in the case of U28, U36,
U50, and U60, the topology with the minimum number of
pentagonal adjacencies is also that of highest symmetry, and
wecontend that symmetryis amajor factor in determiningthe
relative stability of these clusters. Consistent with this assess-
ment, the 44-vertex fullerene topology with the least number
of pentagonal adjacencies does not have the highest symme-
try of the 89 possibilities, and it is not adopted by the U44
cluster. The topology with the fewest pentagonal adjacencies
has ideal D2symmetry. The higher-symmetry topologies with
44 vertices belong to point groups D3d(three), D3h(two), and
T (one). Cluster U44 adopts D3dsymmetry. The degree of
sphericity also appears to be important, as the 44-vertex
topology with T symmetry was not adopted by U44, probably
owing to its pronounced triangular shape, which results in
high curvature in some regions. The importance of symmetry
in carbon fullerene-topology clusters was recognized early by
Kroto[19]who observed that structural factors should favor the
more symmetric isomers. In higher-symmetry clusters, strain
is more evenly distributed throughout the cluster. It has been
demonstrated that self-assembly of structural units preferen-
tially leads to higher-symmetry products.[22]
In stark contrast to the harsh conditions for synthesis of
carbon fullerenes, uranyl peroxide clusters self-assemble in
aqueous solutions and persist under ambient conditions. They
can be maintained in solution for several months, and they
readily crystallize into extended structures. In another
departure from carbon-fullerene structures, incorporation of
squares in the topologies of uranyl peroxide polyhedra, as
observed in U24, U32, and U40,[8,10]presents the possibility of
unprecedented topological variability. The chemical behavior
of this family of uranyl peroxide clusters is expected to be
rather varied and different from typical uranyl aqueous
chemistry, and the diversity of accessible structures suggests
chemical tuning for specific purposes.
Currently, the details of interactions between the uranyl
polyhedra and the counterions remain unclear, but it is
evident that manipulation of these counterions results in
different cluster topologies. Syntheses with only lithium as a
counterion have resulted in U24, U32, and U36, whereas
those with potassium only have given U28. A mixture of
sodium and potassium provided U44, and lithium and
potassium together resulted in U60. Organic cations were
used in the synthesis of U40 and U50 together with lithium,
although the role of these cations within the clusters is
unknown. The pH value of the solution may also be impor-
tant, with less alkaline solutions appearing to favor larger
clusters.
Experimental Section
Cluster Synthesis: U60: Aqueous solutions of uranyl nitrate hexahy-
drate (0.5m, 1 mL), hydrogen peroxide (30%, 1 mL), and potassium
chloride (0.40m, 0.1 mL) were combined in a 20 mL scintillation vial.
The pH value was adjusted to 9 by adding of LiOH(aq) (4m,
0.40 mL). After seven days, large, yellow, cubic crystals formed in
solution. U36: Aqueous uranyl nitrate hexahydrate (2m, 100 mL),
hydrogen peroxide (30%, 250 mL), and LiOH (4m, 2 mL) were
combined in a 20 mL scintillation vial. After six months, yellow
equant crystals were recovered. U44: Aqueous uranyl nitrate
hexahydrate (0.2m, 2 mL) was combined with solid KHSO4
(0.0695 g) in a 10 mL glass test tube. The resulting solution was
stirred vigorously after the addition of aqueous solutions of NaOH
(3m, 0.5 mL) and hydrogen peroxide (30%, 1.25 mL). After the
resulting solution was held in ambient conditions for four days, a
pH value of 6.67 was measured. Six days after the initial preparation,
a portion of the solution (500 mL) was transferred to a 4 mL glass vial.
A layer of [D]chloroform (99%) was added, and the vial was capped.
Yellow hexagonal, plate-like crystals 500 mm wide formed within
three weeks. In all three cases, crystals were harvested upon
formation, at which time the yields were on the order of 10% or less.
X-ray diffraction: Diffraction data was collected for crystals of
each compound at T=110 K using a Bruker PLATFORM three-
circle single crystal X-ray diffractometer equipped with a CCD
detector and MoKaradiation. The data for each was corrected for
adsorption semiempirically using the intensities of equivalent reflec-
tions. Structures were solved and refined using the SHELXTL
(Bruker Advanced X-ray Solutions, Madison, WI, USA). Anisotropic
displacement parameters were refined for uranium and potassium
atoms, and isotropic displacement parameters were refined for all
other atoms. U60: Space group Fm3¯, a=37.884(2) ?, R1=7.87% for
2162 Fo?4sFo, S=1.13, 211 refined parameters, wR2=26.5%. U36:
Space group P1¯, a=19.861(2), b=23.369(2), c=30.964(3) ?, a=
77.897(2), b=88.570(2), g=89.136(2)8 8, R1=6.36% for 11501 Fo?
4sFo, S=0.82, 1213 refined parameters, wR2=18.7%. U44: Space
group R3¯, a=20.924(1), c=77.814(3) ?, R1=5.90% for 3681 Fo?
4sFo, S=0.97, 298 refined parameters, wR2=19.2%. Further details
on the crystal structure investigation may be obtained from the
Fachinformationszentrum Karlsruhe, 76344 Eggenstein-Leopoldsha-
fen, Germany (fax: (+49)7247-808-666; e-mail: crysdata@fiz-karls-
ruhe.de), on quoting the depository numbers CSD-420185 (U36),
CSD-420184 (U44), and CSD-420183 (U60).
Received: December 2, 2008
Revised: January 29, 2009
Published online: && &&, 2009
.
self-assembly · uranium
Keywords: actinides · fullerenes · polyoxometalates ·
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Communications
Polyoxometalates
G. E. Sigmon, D. K. Unruh, J. Ling,
B. Weaver, M. Ward, L. Pressprich,
A.Simonetti,P. C.Burns*
&&&&—&&&&
Symmetry versus Minimal Pentagonal
Adjacencies in Uranium-Based
Polyoxometalate Fullerene Topologies
C U soon: Clusters containing 60, 44, and
36 uranyl peroxide hydroxide polyhedra
(see picture) adopt fullerene topologies
of maximum symmetry. The largest of
these, denoted U60, is topologically
identical to C60with no pentagonal adja-
cencies and the highest possible sym-
metry. U44 adopts the topology with
maximum symmetry rather than that with
the lowest number of pentagonal adja-
cencies.
Angewandte
Chemie
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Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2009, 48, 1–5 ? 2009 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim
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These are not the final page numbers! ??