Synthesis and characterization of oxovanadium(IV) complexes with saccharides

Oxovanadium(IV) complexes of the monosaccharides d-glucose and d- fructose, and the disaccharides sucrose and turanose, were obtained in aqueous solution at pH 12. Their solid sodium salts were precipitated with absolute ethanol and characterized by UV-VIS, IR, and diffuse reflectance spectroscopies. Magnetic susceptibilities at room temperature were also determined. The L:M stoichiometry, as derived from spectrophotometric titrations, was 2:1 for all saccharides except for the d-fructose complex, which was 3:1. The analytical and magnetic data also show that in the solid state the complex of this ligand shows a different behavior, generating a dinuclear species bridged by a sugar molecule, whereas all the other complexes are mononuclear.