Secondary Synthesis of Two Cobalt Complexes by the Use of 5‐Sulfosalicylate and 1,10‐Phenanthroline and Their Crystal Structures

Cobalt(II) nitrate reacted with 1,10‐phenanthroline (phen) and 5‐sulfosalicylic acid (H 3 ssal) to yield the cobalt(II) complex [Co(phen) 2 (H 2 O) 2 ](Hssal)·4H 2 O ( 1 ) and the reaction of 1 with copper acetate led to a novel complex [Co(phen)(H 2 O) 4 ][Cu 2 (ssal) 2 (phen) 2 ]·5H 2 O ( 2 ). These two complexes were cation‐anion species and the cationic motif [Co(phen) 2 (H 2 O) 2 ] 2+ of 1 could be converted to [Co(phen)(H 2 O) 4 ] 2+ in the formation process of new anion [Cu 2 (phen) 2 (ssal) 2 ] 2− of 2 . In both complexes abundant hydrogen bonds construct different supramolecular architectures, thus the conversion reaction can provide a new path to create novel supramolecular network.