Crystal structure of bis(μ-3-nitrobenzoato)-κ3O,O′:O;κ3O:O,O′-bis[bis(3-cyanopyridine-κN1)(3-nitrobenzoato-κ2O,O′)cadmium]

The asymmetric unit of the title compound, [Cd2(C7H4NO4)4(C6H4N2)4], contains one CdIIatom, two 3-nitrobenzoate (NB) anions and two 3-cyanopyridine (CPy) ligands. The two CPy ligands act as monodentate N(pyridine)-bonding ligands, while the two NB anions act as bidentate ligands through the carboxylate O atoms. The centrosymmetric dinuclear complex is generated by application of inversion symmetry, whereby the CdIIatoms are bridged by the carboxylate O atoms of two symmetry-related NB anions, thus completing the distorted N2O5pentagonal–bipyramidal coordination sphere of each CdIIatom. The benzene and pyridine rings are oriented at dihedral angles of 10.02 (7) and 5.76 (9)°, respectively. In the crystal, C—H...N hydrogen bonds link the molecules, enclosingR22(26) ring motifs, in which they are further linkedviaC—H...O hydrogen bonds, resulting in a three-dimensional network. In addition, π–π stacking interactions between parallel benzene rings and between parallel pyridine rings of adjacent molecules [shortest centroid-to-centroid distances = 3.885 (1) and 3.712 (1) Å, respectively], as well as a weak C—H...π interaction, may further stabilize the crystal structure.