Water is the cheapest and most abundant solvent available on our planet, which plays an essential role in most of the biological and chemical processes. Therefore, extensive research effort has been focused on the properties of its small clusters. Water fragments have two hydrogen atoms and two lone-pairs on oxygen that can contribute to four hydrogen bonds within a tetrahedral geometry, enabling them to stabilize the supramolecular lattice. In this study, cyclotribenzoin (<b>2</b>) was reduced by sodium borohydride to yield a cone-shaped hexaol (<b>1</b>). Based on the crystal data, the reduction of cyclotribenzoin causes a change in the conformation of macrocycle, generating a hydrophilic environment for discrete tetrahedral pentameric water clusters to encapsulate inside the crystal cavity. The tetrahedral cluster is highly ordered, with four discrete hydrogen bonds established within the cluster itself. Six molecules of reduced cyclotribenzoin bond to water cluster through their hydroxyl groups to form a three-dimensional hydrogen-bonded network.

Confinement of water pentamers within the crystals of a reduced cyclotribenzoin

256th National Meeting (2018)

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