Supramolecular aggregation of two hydroxycarboxylic acid derivatives.

The crystal structures of 7,7-dicyclobutyl-5-hydroxymethyl-6-oxabicyclo[3.2.1]octane-1-carboxylic acid, C17H26O4, (I), and 1-(hydroxymethyl)-7-oxaspiro[bicyclo[3.2.1]octane-6,1'-cyclopentane]-5-carboxylic acid, C13H20O4, (II), determined at 170 K, show that the conformation of the hydroxymethyl group (anti or gauche) affects the dimensionality (one- or two-dimensional) of the supramolecular structures via O-H...O hydrogen bonds. In (I), the carboxyl and hydroxymethyl groups interact with themselves, forming a one-dimensional step-ladder, while in (II), a two-dimensional structure is made up of carboxylic acid centrosymmetric R(2)2(8) dimers connected by hydroxyl-to-ether contacts.