The zwitterion of 4-nitro-2-{(E)-[2-(piperidin-1-yl)ethyl]iminomethyl}phenol.

The title Schiff base compound, 4-nitro-1-oxo-2-{(E)-[2-(piperidin-1-yl)ethyl]iminiomethyl}cyclohexadienide, C(14)H(19)N(3)O(3), exists as a zwitterion, with the H atom of the phenol group being transferred to the imine N atom. The C=O, C(Ar)-C(Ar) and C-N bond lengths are in agreement with the oxocyclohexadienide-iminium zwitterionic form. The iminium H atom is engaged in a strong intramolecular hydrogen bond with the O atom of the keto group (N(+)-H...O) to form an S(6) motif. Soft C-H...O interactions in the ac plane lead to the development of hydrogen-bonded tapes, which are pi-stacked through the oxocyclohexadienide ring and iminium group. The significance of this study is in providing crystallographic evidence, supported by NMR and IR data, of the predominance of the oxocyclohexadienide-iminium zwitterion form over the noncharged canonical form in the title Schiff base.

Carbonyl-carbonyl, carbonyl-pi and carbonyl-halogen dipolar interactions as the directing motifs of the supramolecular structure of ethyl 6-chloro-2-oxo-2H-chromene-3-carboxylate and ethyl 6-bromo-2-oxo-2H-chromene-3-carboxylate.

The title compounds, C(12)H(9)ClO(4), (I), and C(12)H(9)BrO(4), (II), are isomorphous and crystallize in the monoclinic space group P2(1)/c. Both compounds present an anti conformation between the 3-carboxy and the lactone carbonyl groups. Both carbonyl groups are out of the plane defined by the remaining chromene atoms, by 8.37 (6) and 17.57 (6) degrees for (I), and by 9.07 (8) and 18.96 (18) degrees for (II), owing to their involvement in intermolecular interactions. In both compounds, layers of centrosymmetric hydrogen-bonded dimers are developed in the [-5 -2 22] plane through C-H...O interactions, involving both carbonyl groups as acceptors. Two families of dimers stack through C=O...C=O, C=O...pi and C-X...C=O (X = Cl and Br) dipolar interactions, as well as a C-H...pi interaction, developing the three-dimensional structure along the c axis.