N,N′-Bis(2-azaniumylbenzyl)ethane-1,2-diaminium tetrachloride

The title compound, C16H26N44+·4Cl−, is based on a fully protonated tetraamine. In the cation, both benzene rings are connected by an all-trans chain, and the rings are almost parallel, with an angle between the mean planes of 8.34 (12)°. The benzene rings are arranged in such a way that the NH3+ substituents are oriented cis with respect to the central chain. This arrangement is a consequence of multiple N—H...Cl hydrogen bonds, involving all N—H groups in the cation and the four independent Cl− anions. These contacts have strengths ranging from weak to strong (based on H...Cl separations), and generate a complex three-dimensional crystal structure with no preferential crystallographic orientation for the contacts.