A Supramolecular Hexameric Ring from Alumazene and Methylsulfonate^†

A dealkylsilylation reaction of alumazene [2,6-(i-Pr)2C6H3NAlMe]3 (1) with trimethylsilyl methylsulfonate in a 1:2 molar ratio in toluene afforded a supramolecular cyclic hexamer {Me[2,6-(i-Pr)2C6H3NAl]3(O3SMe)2}6 (2) composed of six intact alumazene rings and possessing two types of bridging sulfonate groups. Changing the reagent molar ratio to 1:3 caused the third sulfonate to partially substitute the last alumazene methyl group in an η2 fashion and introduced a disorder in the crystal lattice.