Experimental and Computational Study of a New Wheel-Shaped {[W5O21]3[(UVIO2)2(μ‑O2)]3}30– Polyoxometalate

A new wheel-shaped polyoxometalate {[W5O21]3[(UVIO2)2(μ-O2)]3}30– has been synthesized and structurally characterized. The calculated electrostatic potential reveals the protonation of several μ-oxo bridges reducing the polyoxometalate total charge. A protonated structure computed at the density functional level of theory (DFT) is in good agreement with the experimental fit. This species presents a classical polyoxometalate electronic structure with well-defined metal and oxo bands belonging to its U/W and oxo/peroxo constituents, respectively. Furthermore, fragment calculations indicate that the electronic structures of the uranyl–peroxide and polyoxotugstate fragments are little affected by the nanowheel assembly.