Substitutent Effects in the Periphery of 2,9-Bisaryl-tetraazaperopyrene Dyes

A series of 2,9-bisaryl-1,3,8,10-tetraazaperopyrene (TAPP) derivatives has been synthesized by reacting 4,9-diamino-3,10-perylenequinone diimine with a large excess of the corresponding benzoyl chloride in refluxing nitrobenzene. Among all derivatives only ortho-substituted phenyl congeners were sufficiently soluble for studying solutions of defined concentration in organic solvents. The molecular structures of the crystallized compounds, determined by X-ray diffraction of four derivatives, are determined by the planar tetraazaperopyrene core and the interplanar angle of the phenyl rings, which depends on the size of the ortho substituent (40−70°). The intermolecular packing pattern of all compounds is characterized by parallel stacks of molecules with the substituted phenyl rings rotated out of the peropyrene plane to reduce the steric repulsion. Crystals of a TAPP derivative suitable for X-ray diffraction were grown from trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) for the first time, establishing a 2-fold protonated spe...