Synthesis of tetraphenylstibonium alkyl- and aryl-sulphonates: crystal structure of tetraphenylstibonium benzenesulphonate hydrate

Abstract The tetraphenylstibonium sulphonates Ph 4 SbO 3 SR· n H 2 O ( n = 1, R = C 6 H 5 ; n = 0, R = CH 3 , CF 3 , CH 2 CH 2 OH, 4-CH 3 C 6 H 4 , 2,4(NO 2 ) 2 C 6 H 3 ) have been obtained by neutralization of tetraphenylstibonium hydroxide with the appropriate alkyl- or aryl-sulphonic acid. The crystal structure of tetraphenylstibonium benzenesulfonate hydrate has been determined by single crystal X-ray diffraction. The sulphonate group is unidentately coordinated to antimony, which has a distorted trigonal bipyramidal environment. The rather long SbO bond, (2.506(4) A) and the distortion of the polyhedron around Sb, and the IR data for the sulphonate group are consistent with the assumption of a large ionic bond character in the SbO bond. From IR data analogous molecular structures are inferred for the other tetraphenylstibonium sulphonates.