Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Single-crystal X-ray analysis of the β-heptakis(trifluoromethyl)-meso-tetrakis(p-fluorophenyl)porphyrin, H₂ [(CF₃ )₇ TpFPP], has revealed the first example of a stable cis tautomer of a free-base porphyrin, the long-postulated intermediate of porphyrin tautomerism. The stability of the unique molecule appears to reflect a dual origin: a strongly saddled porphyrin skeleton, which alleviates electrostatic repulsion between the two NH protons, and two polarization-enhanced, transannular N-H⋅⋅⋅O-H⋅⋅⋅N hydrogen bond chains, each involving a molecule of water. DFT calculations suggest that the observed tautomer has a lower energy than the alternative, doubly hydrated trans tautomer by some 8.3 kcal mol^-1 . A fascinating prospect thus exists that H₂ [(CF₃ )₇ TpFPP]⋅2 H₂ O and cognate structures may act as supramolecular synthons, which, given their chirality, may even be amenable to resolution into optically pure enantiomers.