Crystal Engineering: Lattice Inclusion Based on O–H···O Hydrogen-Bonded Self-Assembly and Guest-Induced Structural Mimicry

Pyrene–tetraphenol TP2 constitutes a molecular system with inherent features for inclusion of two or more guest molecules that are complementary in terms of size and shape. Hydrogen-bonded self-assembly of TP2 in the solid state is shown to lead to voids within which the guest molecules are incorporated. A large aromatic expanse extant to the pyrene core in TP2 permits inclusion of two different types of guest species interchangeably. The robust association manifests in packing equivalence in all of the inclusion compounds of TP2 with the exception of the compound formed with pyridine and o-dichlorobenzene guests; in the latter, pyridine terminates the otherwise 3-dimensional hydrogen-bonded organization. The half-component of TP2, i.e., 4,6-bis­(4-hydroxyphenyl)-m-xylene (BX), deduced by simple structural reduction, is shown to exhibit guest inclusion, but with considerably less guest accessible volume. The limited yet meaningful set of guests allows mimicry of the two expected patterns of molecular organization based on hydrogen bonding for both TP2 and BX in the solid state.