Chained MOFs Based on Silver Malate

Silver malate [Ag2(mal)] (1) (mal = O2C–CH2–CH(OH)–CO2) with a polymeric structure is prepared and characterized by elemental analysis and IR spectroscopy. This complex can be dissolved upon heating in pyridine (py) or its derivatives. Crystals of the [Ag2(py)4(mal)]·H2O (2a), [Ag2(3-Me-py)4(mal)] (3a) and [Ag2(4-Me-py)4(mal)]·0.6(4-Me-py) (4a) coordination polymers are prepared from solutions. The crystals can be characterized by XRD but undergo rapid degradation and pyridine loss when extracted from the mother liquor or slightly heated. The desolvation and decoordination of 2a, 3a, 4a yields [Ag2(py)2(mal)] (2), [Ag2(3-Me-py)3(mal)] (3), [Ag2(4-Me-py)3(mal)] (4), respectively, as stable products.