Two layered copper–bis(triazole) assemblies with Keggin polyoxoanions as pendants: Syntheses, structures and photocatalytic properties

•We report two layered assemblies with Keggin polyoxoanions as pendants.•The photocatalytic properties were studied upon UV irradiation.•Two complexes show superior photocatalytic activity in the reduction of organic dye.

Two new inorganic–organic hybrid compounds based on well-defined Keggin-type polyoxometalates and copper–bis(triazole) assemblies, namely, [Cu3(L)3(PMo12O40)2] · 9H2O (1) and [Cu3(L)3(PW12O40)2] · 9H2O (2) [L = 1,4-bis(1,2,4-triazol-1-ylmethyl)-benzene], have been obtained under hydrothermal conditions and characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction, elemental analysis, IR, and TG. To the best of our knowledge, compounds 1 and 2 represent rare 2D structural examples with POM clusters as pendants. In addition, the diffuse reflectivity spectra of these two compounds show that they can be regarded as a wide gap semiconductor. The photocatalytic experiments indicate that both 1 and 2 exhibit high catalytic activity for photodegradation of Rhodamine B (RhB) with UV irradiation.

Graphical abstractTwo layered copper–bis(triazole) assemblies with Keggin polyoxoanions as pendants are presented that exhibit high catalytic activity for photodegradation of rhodamine B with UV irradiation.Figure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload as PowerPoint slide