10.1081/SIM-100002039
The research focuses on the synthesis and characterization of a linear pentadentate ligand, N-(2-hydroxyethyl)-N′′-(2-hydroxybenzyl)-diethylenetriamine (HL), and its zinc(II) complex. The study investigates the promoted hydrolysis of 4-nitrophenyl acetate (NA) by the zinc(II) complex. The ligand and its complex were synthesized using reagents like 2-chloroethanol, diethylenetriamine, and salicylaldehyde, and characterized using IR spectra, 1H NMR spectra, and elemental analyses. The protonation constants of HL and the stability constants of its Zn(II) complexation were determined through pH potentiometric titration at 25°C and I = 0.1 mol/L KNO3. The kinetics of NA hydrolysis catalyzed by the complex were studied spectrophotometrically at 25°C and I = 0.1 mol/L KNO3 in a CH3CN solvent, with the second-order rate constants (kc) for NA hydrolysis being obtained. The experiments involved the preparation of the ligand and its complex, pH titration to determine protonation and complexation equilibria, and kinetic studies to measure the rate of NA hydrolysis catalyzed by the complex.