A Stable Hydrogen-Bonded Coordination Network with Removable Guests

Zinc(II) coordination complexes, each having two linearly oriented peripheral carboxylate units, combine with 3,3′-dimethylbenzidene pillars to create channeled structures that host small organic guests. The porous solids reported here are connected solely via strong, charge-assisted hydrogen bonds and contain guests that vary in size, shape, and degree of hydrophobicity. The hydrogen-bonded framework is maintained upon guest loss, under vacuum and up to ∼200 °C. The strength and flexibility of these frameworks make them ideal candidates for molecular storage, separations, guest exchange, and guest transport.