Crystal structure of bis(1-methyl-1H-imidazole-κN ³)(5,10,15,20-tetraphenylporphyrinato-κ⁴ N)iron(II) toluene trisolvate

The title complex, [Fe(C 4 H 6 N 2 ) 2 (C 44 H 28 N 4 )]·3C 7 H 8 , possesses inversion symmetry with the iron(II) atom located on a center of symmetry. The metal atom is coordinated in a symmetric octahedral geometry by four pyrrole N atoms of the porphyrin ligand in the equatorial plane and two N atoms of 1-methylimidazole ligands in the axial sites; the complex crystallizes with three toluene solvent molecules. The average Fe—N P (N P is a porphyrin N atom) bond length is 1.994 (3) Å and the axial Fe—N Im (N Im is an imidazole N atom) bond length is 2.0000 (14) Å. The two 1-methylimidazole ligands are mutually parallel. The dihedral angle between the 1-methylimidazole plane and the plane of the closest Fe—N P vector is 25.54 (10)°. In the crystal, the only significant intermolecular interactions present are C—H...π interactions.