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During the course of exploring crystallization conditions in generating metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) for use in the crystalline sponge method, two discrete metal–organic complexes, namely, aqua[2,4,6-tris(pyridin-4-yl)-1,3,5-triazine]zinc(II) bromide, [Zn(C₁₈H₁₂N₆)(H₂O)]Br₂, and aqua[2,4,6-tris(pyridin-4-yl)-1,3,5-triazine]zinc(II) chloride, [Zn(C₁₈H₁₂N₆)(H₂O)]Cl₂, were encountered. Structures in the orthorhombic space groupPnma(No. 62) for the bromide congener at 299 K and the chloride congener at 100 K were obtained. A phase transition for the bromide congener occurred upon cooling from 299 to 100 K, yielding a crystal polymorph with four domains that exhibits monoclinicP2₁/mspace-group symmetry (No. 11), which arises from conformational changes. The main intramolecular contacts that contribute to the crystal packing in all observed structures are H...H, Halide...H/H...Halide, C...H/H...C, and N...H/H...N. Intramolecular hydrogen bonding between the Zn-bound water and non-Zn-bound pyridyl N atoms is a prominent feature within the three-dimensional networks. Aromatic π-stacking between the non-Zn-bound pyridine rings and contacts involving the halide ligands further stabilize the crystal packing. 

Bis(phthalocyaninato)lanthanoid( iii ) (LnPc 2 ) complexes have attracted significant attention for their exceptional optical, electronic and magnetic properties. Crystallization of these compounds usually requires cumbersome methods such as sublimation and electrocrystallization, which is a significant limitation to both structural determinations and the preparation of high purity materials at scale. We report here the selective crystallization of four polymorphs of LnPc 2 obtained exclusively by the slow evaporation of saturated solutions. The obtained phase depends on the initial oxidation state of the LnPc 2 molecule and the choice of solvent. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction studies were used to determine 14 new structures including Ln = La, Pr, Nd, Sm, Gd, Tb, Dy, Er and Yb, as well as correct previous mis-identifications from the literature. We provide a detailed comparison of molecular structure and crystal packing in all LnPc 2 polymorphs. The primary feature in all phases is columnar stacking based on parallel π–π interactions, with a variety of slip angles within those stacks as well as secondary interactions between them. Chemical redox and acid–base titrations, performed on re-dissolved crystals demonstrate that LnPc 2 + and LnPc 2 − are easily obtained through weak oxidizing and reducing agents, respectively. Additionally, we show that the protonated form of the NdPc 2 − complex has a nearly identical UV-vis spectrum to that of neutral NdPc 2 , explaining some of the confusion over chemical composition in previously published literature.