Metalation Triggers Single Crystalline Order in a Porous Solid

We report the dramatic triggering
of structural order in a Zr­(IV)-based
metal–organic framework (MOF) through docking of HgCl2 guests. Although as-made crystals were unsuitable for single crystal
X-ray diffraction (SCXRD), with diffraction limited to low angles
well below atomic resolution due to intrinsic structural disorder,
permeation of HgCl2 not only leaves the crystals intact
but also resulted in fully resolved backbone as well as thioether
side groups. The crystal structure revealed elaborate HgCl2-thioether aggregates nested within the host octahedra to form a
hierarchical, multifunctional net. The chelating thioether groups
also promote Hg­(II) removal from water, while the trapped Hg­(II) can
be easily extricated by 2-mercaptoethanol to reactivate the MOF sorbent.