Abstract
•Hirshfeld surface analysis and DFT calculations were used to study a Ni complex with a N,S ligand bearing a long alkyl chain.
The N,S bidentate ligand S-hexyl-β-N-(4-nitrobenzylidene)dithiocarbazate (HL), obtained by condensation of S-hexyldithiocarbazate with 4-nitrobenzaldehyde, has been used to synthesize the nickel(II) complex, NiL2. The ligand and complex were characterized by physicochemical techniques and the nickel species also by single crystal X-ray diffraction. The metal is four-coordinated with trans configuration of the Schiff bases that chelate the metal in the deprotonated monoanionic form. When compared to the free ligand, the metal complex exhibits a considerable increase in fluorescence intensity. Hirshfeld surface analysis and quantum chemical density functional theory (DFT) calculations were conducted to evaluate the non-covalent interactions of the complex NiL2. The antibacterial activity of free ligand HL and the complex was evaluated in vitro against pathogenic gram-negative bacteria, Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumonia. The test showed that neither the HL alone nor the complex were found to exhibit any activity against the tested organisms.
[Display omitted] A novel nickel(II) complex with dithiocarbazate ligand bearing a long alkyl chain has been studied via DFT, X-ray diffraction and evaluated for its antibacterial activity.