Crystals, 2022
Surfactant Provided Control of Crystallization Polymorphic Outcome and Stabilization of Metastable Polymorphs of 2,6-Dimethoxyphenylboronic Acid

a. Department of Physical Chemistry, University of Latvia, Jelgavas 1, Riga 1004, Latvia

2,6-Dimethoxyphenylboronic acid was used as a model substance to investigate the additive crystallization approach for polymorph control in phenylboronic acids. It was crystallized under different conditions by performing evaporation and cooling crystallization from different solvents. Most of the crystallizations from pure solvents produced the thermodynamically stable Form I, but in evaporation crystallization from alcohols, Form II or even a new polymorph, Form III, could be obtained. Structurally related substances, polymers, and surfactants with diverse intermolecular interaction possibilities were tested as additives. Surfactants were found to facilitate the crystallization of the metastable forms and therefore were investigated more extensively. The surfactants Span 20 and n–octyl-β-D-glucopyranoside provided crystallization of the metastable forms in the evaporation crystallization and notably stabilized Form II. The lattice energy, energy frameworks, Hirshfeld surface analysis, full interaction maps, and morphology prediction were used to identify the structural differences between Forms I and II and rationalize the ability of the additives to provide formation of Form II in the crystallization and to stabilize it.

Crystals, 2022
Controlling the Polymorphic Outcome of 2,6-Dimethoxybenzoic Acid Crystallization Using Additives

a. Department of Physical Chemistry, University of Latvia, Jelgavas 1, Riga 1004, Latvia

In this study, 2,6-dimethoxybenzoic acid (2,6MeOBA) was used as a model substance to investigate the use of additives to control the polymorphic outcome of crystallization. 2,6MeOBA exists as three polymorphs. Two of the 2,6MeOBA polymorphs, I and III, obtained in most of the crystallization experiments, were characterized by thermal analysis, and their relative thermodynamic stability was determined. Forms I and III are enantiotropically related, where form III is the high-temperature form. Pure form II was very difficult to obtain. Crystallization of 2,6MeOBA was explored under different conditions by performing evaporation and cooling crystallization from different solvents. Surfactants, polymers, and different molecular compounds with diverse possibilities for the formation of intermolecular interactions were tested as additives. The additives facilitating the crystallization of the metastable forms were additionally studied under different crystallization conditions. The effect of additives polyethylene glycol (PEG) and hydroxypropyl cellulose (HPC) on the thermodynamic stability and solvent-mediated phase transition (SMPT) kinetics was evaluated. HPC and PEG showed the potential to favor the formation of form III in crystallization from water.

Saršūns, K.a Kemere, M.b, Karziņins, Kļimenkovs, I.a A.a Bērziņš, A.a Sarakovskis, A.b Rekis, T.a
Crystal Growth and Design, 2022
Fine-Tuning Solid State Luminescence Properties of Organic Crystals via Solid Solution Formation: The Example of 4-Iodothioxanthone–4-Chlorothioxanthone System

a. Department of Physical Chemistry, University of Latvia, Jelgavas 1, Riga 1004, Latvia

b. Institute of Solid State Physics, University of Latvia, Ķengaraga iela 8, LV1063 Riga, Latvia

Solid solutions with fine-tunable photoluminescence have been obtained in a 4-iodothioxanthone–4-chlorothioxanthone system. Both pure components are room-temperature luminophors demonstrating different luminescence properties. It was discovered that in the 4-chlorothioxanthone structure, up to half of the molecules can be replaced by the iodo analogue obtaining solid solutions in the respective composition range. Despite this solid solution existing in such a large composition range, the variation of the luminescence spectra is not substantial. In the 4-iodothioxanthone structure, only up to ∼20% of the molecules can be replaced by the chloro analogue before the composition limit of this solid solution is reached. In contrast, there is a strong composition-dependent response of the luminescence. A considerable change in luminescence spectra is observed even if only a few mol % of the opposite component is added. The spectra of mechanical mixtures of pure components are different from those of the solid solutions, which demonstrates the unique behavior of the newly obtained solid phases. This study shows great potential to use solid solution engineering in the organic solid state to tune material properties in a continuum as opposed to other crystal engineering approaches, leading to property tunability in a stepwise fashion.

University of Latvia, Faculty of Chemistry, Laboratory of Molecular Crystals. Address: Jelgavas iela 1, Riga, LV1004, Latvia

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