Cu(SO3)47-:: A readily accessible building block for new coordination polymers

The combination of Cu(II) with excess sodium sulfite or a mixture of sodium sulfite and sodium hydrogensulfite produces a colorless solution consistent with the reduction of Cu(II) to Cu(I). The addition of divalent metal ions such as Mn2+, Co2+, Ni2+ and Zn2+ to such solutions, leads to the generation of coordination networks in which the divalent metal ions link together anions of formula Cu(SO3)(4)(7-). This symmetrical anion consists of a tetrahedrally coordinated Cu(I) center bound to the sulfur atoms of four sulfite anionic Ligands. Isostructural 1D coordination polymers of composition Na-3{[Cu-I(SO3)(4)][Zn-II(H2O)(2)](2)}center dot H2O and Na-3{[Cu-I(SO3)(4)][Co-II(H2O)(2)](2)}center dot H2O, isostructural 2D coordination polymers of composition [Na-4(H2O)(17)][Ni(H2O)(6)](2){[Cu(SO3)(4)](2)-[Ni(H2O)(2)](3)} and [Na-4(H2O)(17)][Co(H2O)(6)](2){[Cu(SO3)(4)](2)[Co(H2O)(2)](3)}, and a 3D coordination polymer of composition Na(H2O)(6)-{[Cu-I(SO3)(4)][Mn-II(H2O)(2)](3)} are reported.