Oxido-bis¬[chlorido(4,4'-di-tert-butyl-2,2'-bipyridine-2N,N')dioxido¬molybdenum(VI)] 0.2-hydrate

The title hydrate, [Mo2Cl2O5(C18H24N2)2]·0.2H2O, has been isolated as the oxidation product of [Mo(3-C3H5)Cl(CO)2(di-t-Bu-bipy)] (where di-t-Bu-bipy is 4,4'-di-tert-butyl-2,2'-bipyridine). A -oxide ligand bridges two similar MoCl(di-t-Bu-bipy)O2 units, having the terminal oxide ligands mutually cis, and the chloride and -oxide trans to each other. In the binuclear complex, the coordination geometries of the metal atoms can be described as highly distorted octahedra. Individual complexes co-crystallize with a partially occupied water molecule of crystallization (occupancy factor = 0.20; H atoms not located), with the crystal packing being mediated by the need to effectively fill the available space. A number of weak C-HO and C-HCl interactions are present.