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Macrocyclic Polyethers and Their Complexes
Author(s) -
Pedersen C. J.,
Frensdorff H. K.
Publication year - 1972
Publication title -
angewandte chemie international edition in english
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.831
H-Index - 550
eISSN - 1521-3773
pISSN - 0570-0833
DOI - 10.1002/anie.197200161
Subject(s) - alkali metal , chemistry , ring (chemistry) , ionic bonding , polymer chemistry , metal , ion , inorganic chemistry , organic chemistry
The most important, and almost unique, property of the macrocyclic polyethers (“crown compounds”) is their tendency to form complexes with alkali metal salts and salts with similar cations. Such complexes are held together by electrostatic attraction between the cation and the negative end of the CO dipoles. The stability of the polyether complexes depends primarily upon how well the cation fits into the polyether ring; other factors are the charge density of the cation and—in solution—the solvating power of the medium. Cyclic polyethers have been successfully employed, inter alia, in experiments with ionic compounds in organic solvents and in studies of ion transport in biological systems.