Alkali metal ions, crown ether/cryptand selectivity

The discovery of crown ethers and cryptands in the late sixties opened new possibilities of cation recognition with improvement of selectivity, especially for alkali metal ions for which there is a lack of selective chelators. Then, the idea of coupling these ionophores to chromophores or fluorophores, leading to so-called chromoionophores and fluoroionophores, respectively, emerged some years later l9) As only fluorescent probes are considered in this chapter, chromoionophores will not be described. 

Macrocycllc compounds (some crown ethers and cryptands) are selective reagents for extractive separation of alkali metals [22-27]. These ligands form cationic complexes with alkali metal ions, and these can be extracted as ion-pairs with suitable counter-ions e.g., picrate) [28], most often into chloroform. For potassium, p-nitrophenoxide was used as counter-ion [29]. In cases, where a coloured anionic complex is a counter-ion [30], the extract may serve as a basis for determining the alkali metal. The effect of the structure of the dibenzo-crown ether rings upon the selectivity and effectiveness of isolation of alkali metals has been studied in detail [31]. Chromogenic macrocyclic reagents applied for the isolation and separation of alkali metals have been discussed [32]. 

Figure 10.8c shows the structure of the cryptand ligand 4,7,13,16,21,24-hexaoxa-l,10-diazabicyclo[8.8.8]hexacosane, commonly called cryptand-222 or crypt-222, where the 222 notation gives the number of O-donor atoms in each of the three chains. Cryptand-222 is an example of a bicyclic ligand which can encapsulate an alkali metal ion. Cryptands protect the complexed metal cation even more effectively than do crown ethers. They show selective coordination behaviour cryptands-211, -221 and -222 with cavity radii of 80, 110 and 140 pm, respectively, form their most stable alkali metal complexes with Li, Na+ and K+ respectively (see Table 10.1 for r on). 

Cryptands are basket-like blcyclic ionophores in which three strands of polyethers are tied together by two nitrogen atoms. They provide three-dimensional spaces for binding metal ions (11.13.14. They are several orders of magnitude more selective than crown ethers in binding alkali metal ions. Table IV provides data on dimensions and log Ka values for K, Na and Li in water for [222] [221] and [211] cryptands. For the [222] cryptand, the difference in the log Ka value between K and Na in water is 2.54. For 18-crown-6, the difference (Table III) is 1.83. 

The selective cation binding properties ol crown ethers and cryptands have obvious commercial applications in the separation of metal ions and these have recently been reviewed (B-78MI52103.79MI52102, B-81MI52103). Many liquid-liquid extraction systems have been developed for alkali and alkaline earth metal separations. Since the hardness of the counterion is inversely proportional to the extraction coefficient, large, soft anions, such as picrate, are usually used. 

Protons are relatively simple targets for sensor molecules and do not require engineered receptors, however, achievement of selective interactions with other chemical species requires much more elaborate receptors. In the most cases cations are bound via electrostatic or coordinative interactions within the receptors alkali metal cations, which are rather poor central ions and form only very weak coordination bonds, are usually bound within crown ethers, azacrown macrocycles, cryptands, podands, and related types of receptor moieties with oxygen and nitrogen donor atoms [8], Most of the common cation sensors are based on the photoinduced electron transfer (PET) mechanism, so the receptor moiety must have its redox potential (HOMO energy) adjusted to quench luminescence of the fluorophore (Figure 16.3). 

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