Two Metastable Endohedral Metallofullerenes Sc2C2@C1(39656)-C82 and Sc2C2@C1(51383)-C84: Direct-C2-Insertion Products from Their Most Stable Precursors.

Endohedral metallofullerenes (EMFs) are sub-nano carbon materials with diverse applications, yet their formation mechanism, particularly for metastable isomers, remains ambiguous. The current theoretical methods focus mainly on the most stable isomers, leading to limited predictability of metastable ones due to their low stabilities and yields. Herein, we report the successful isolation and characterization of two metastable EMFs, Sc2C2@C1(39656)-C82 and Sc2C2@C1(51383)-C84, which violate the isolated pentagon rule (IPR). These two non-IPR EMFs exhibit a rare case of planar and pennant-like Sc2C2 clusters, which can be considered hybrids of the common butterfly-shaped and linear configurations. More importantly, the theoretical results reveal that despite being metastable, these two non-IPR EMFs survived as the products from their most stable precursors, Sc2C2@C2v(5)-C80 and Sc2C2@Cs(6)-C82, via a C2 insertion during the post-formation annealing stages. We propose a systematic theoretical method for predicting metastable EMFs during the post-formation stages. The unambiguous molecular-level structural evidence, combined with the theoretical calculation results, provides valuable insights into the formation mechanisms of EMFs, shedding light on the potential of post-formation mechanisms as a promising approach for EMF synthesis.

Carbene Addition Isomers of C70 formed in the Flame of Low-Pressure Combustion.

In the flames during low-pressure combustion, not only a rich variety of fullerenes but also many reactive intermediates can be produced (e.g., carbene, CH2) that are short-lived and cannot be stabilized directly under normal circumstances. These intermediates can be captured by fullerene carbon cages for stabilization. In this paper, three C71H2 isomers were synthesized in situ in low-pressure benzene-acetylene-oxygen diffusion flame combustion. The results, which were unambiguously characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction, show that the three isomers are carbene addition products of D5h-C70 on different sites. The relative energies and stability of different C71H2 isomers are revealed by Ultraviolet-Visible (UV-Vis) absorption spectroscopy, in combination with theoretical calculations, in this work. Both the in situ capture and theoretical study of these C71H2 isomers in low-pressure combustion will provide more information regarding carbene additions to other fullerenes or other carbon clusters at high temperatures.

Capturing nonclassical C70 with double heptagons in low-pressure combustion.

A double-heptagon-containing C70H6 (dihept-C70H6) was isolated and unambiguously characterized in the soot of low-pressure combustion, which shares the identical heptagonal cage as dihept-C70Cl6 previously identified in the products of carbon arc, and thus represents the first nonclassical fullerene isolable in both carbon arc and combustion.

Sulfur-Doped Quintuple [9]Helicene with Azacorannulene as Core.

Herein, a hetero(S,N)-quintuple [9]helicene (SNQ9H) molecule with an azacorannulene core was synthesized, currently representing the highest hetero-helicene reported in the field of multiple [n]helicenes. X-ray crystallography indicated that SNQ9H includes not only a propeller-shaped conformer SNQ9H-1, but also an unforeseen quasi-propeller-shaped conformer SNQ9H-2. Different conformers were observed for the first time in multiple [n≥9]helicenes, likely owing to the doping of heteroatomic sulfurs in the helical skeletons. Remarkably, the ratio of SNQ9H-1 to SNQ9H-2 can be regulated in situ by the reaction temperature. Experimental studies on the photophysical and redox properties of SNQ9H and theoretical calculations clearly demonstrated that the electronic structures of SNQ9H depend on their molecular conformations. The strategy of introducing heteroatomic sulfurs into the helical skeleton may be useful in constructing various conformers of higher multiple [n]helicenes in the future.

Rational synthesis of an atomically precise carboncone under mild conditions.

Carboncones, a special family of all-carbon allotropes, are predicted to have unique properties that distinguish them from fullerenes, carbon nanotubes, and graphenes. Owing to the absence of methods to synthesize atomically well-defined carboncones, however, experimental insight into the nature of pure carboncones has been inaccessible. Herein, we describe a facile synthesis of an atomically well-defined carboncone[1,2] (C70H20) and its soluble penta-mesityl derivative. Identified by x-ray crystallography, the carbon skeleton is a carboncone with the largest possible apex angle. Much of the structural strain is overcome in the final step of converting the bowl-shaped precursor into the rigid carboncone under mild reaction conditions. This work provides a research opportunity for investigations of atomically precise single-layered carboncones having even higher cone walls and/or smaller apex angles.

General One-step Synthesis of Symmetrical or Unsymmetrical 1,4-Di(organo)fullerenes from Organo(hydro)fullerenes through Direct Oxidative Arylation.

A general one-step synthesis of symmetrical or unsymmetrical 1,4-di(organo)fullerenes from organo(hydro)fullerenes (RC60H) is realized by direct oxidative arylation. The new combination of catalytic trifluoromethanesulfonic acid (TfOH) and stoichiometric o-chloranil is the first to be used to directly generate an R-C60+ intermediate from common RC60H. Unexpectedly, the in situ generated R-C60+ intermediate is shown to be quite stable in whole 13C NMR spectroscopy characterization in the absence of cation quenching reagents. Because the direct oxidation of common RC60H to form the corresponding R-C60+ has never been realized, the present combination of TfOH and o-chloranil solves the challenges associated with the formation of stable RC60+ cations from common RC60H without any coordination of an R group.

Double Negatively Curved C70 Growth through a Heptagon-Involving Pathway.

All previously reported C70 isomers have positive curvature and contain 12 pentagons in addition to hexagons. Herein, we report a new C70 species with two negatively curved heptagon moieties and 14 pentagons. This unconventional heptafullerene[70] containing two symmetric heptagons, referred to as dihept-C70 , grows in the carbon arc by a theoretically supported pathway in which the carbon cluster of a previously reported C66 species undergoes successive C2 insertion via a known heptafullerene[68] intermediate with low energy barriers. As identified by X-ray crystallography, the occurrence of heptagons facilitates a reduction in the angle of the π-orbital axis vector in the fused pentagons to stabilize dihept-C70 . Chlorination at the intersection of a heptagon and two adjacent pentagons can greatly enlarge the HOMO-LUMO gap, which makes dihept-C70 Cl6 isolable by chromatography. The synthesis of dihept-C70 Cl6 offers precious clues with respect to the fullerene formation mechanism in the carbon-clustering process.

An Unconventional Hydrofullerene C66H4 with Symmetric Heptagons Retrieved in Low-Pressure Combustion.

The combustion has long been applied for industrial synthesis of carbon materials such as fullerenes as well as carbon particles (known as carbon black), but the components and structures of the carbon soot are far from being clarified. Herein, we retrieve an unprecedented hydrofullerene C66H4 from a soot of a low-pressure combustion of benzene-acetylene-oxygen. Unambiguously characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction, the C66H4 renders a nonclassical geometry incorporating two heptagons and two pairs of fused pentagons in a C2 v symmetry. The common vertexes of the fused pentagons are bonded with four hydrogen atoms to convert the hydrogen-linking carbon atoms from sp2 to sp3 hybridization, which together with the adjacent heptagons essentially releases the sp2-bond strains on the abutting-pentagon sites of the diheptagonal fused pentagon C66 (dihept-C66). DFT computations suggest the possibility for an in situ hydrogenation process leading to stabilization of the dihept-C66. In addition, the experiments have been carried out to study heptagon-dependent properties of dihept-C66H4, indicating the key responsibility of the heptagon for changing hydrocarbon activity and electronic properties. The present work with the unprecedented double-heptagon-containing hydrofullerene successfully isolated and identified as one of the low-pressure combustion products shows that the heptagon is a new building block for constructing fullerene products in addition to pentagons and hexagons in low-pressure combustion systems.

Dynamic gating of infrared radiation in a textile.

The human body absorbs and loses heat largely through infrared radiation centering around a wavelength of 10 micrometers. However, neither our skin nor the textiles that make up clothing are capable of dynamically controlling this optical channel for thermal management. By coating triacetate-cellulose bimorph fibers with a thin layer of carbon nanotubes, we effectively modulated the infrared radiation by more than 35% as the relative humidity of the underlying skin changed. Both experiments and modeling suggest that this dynamic infrared gating effect mainly arises from distance-dependent electromagnetic coupling between neighboring coated fibers in the textile yarns. This effect opens a pathway for developing wearable localized thermal management systems that are autonomous and self-powered, as well as expanding our ability to adapt to demanding environments.

Flexible decapyrrylcorannulene hosts.

The assembly of spherical fullerenes, or buckyballs, into single crystals for crystallographic identification often suffers from disordered arrangement. Here we show a chiral configuration of decapyrrylcorannulene that has a concave 'palm' of corannulene and ten flexible electron-rich pyrryl group 'fingers' to mimic the smart molecular 'hands' for self-adaptably cradling various buckyballs in a (+)hand-ball-hand(-) mode. As exemplified by crystallographic identification of 15 buckyball structures representing pristine, exohedral, endohedral, dimeric and hetero-derivatization, the pyrryl groups twist with varying dihedral angles to adjust the interaction between decapyrrylcorannulene and fullerene. The self-adaptable electron-rich pyrryl groups, susceptible to methylation, are theoretically revealed to contribute more than the bowl-shaped palm of the corannulene in holding buckyball structures. The generality of the present decapyrrylcorannulene host with flexible pyrryl groups facilitates the visualization of numerous unknown/unsolved fullerenes by crystallography and the assembly of the otherwise close-packed spherical fullerenes into two-dimensional layered structures by intercalation.

Capillary electrophoresis of covalently functionalized single-chirality carbon nanotubes.

We demonstrate the separation of chirality-enriched single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) by degree of surface functionalization using high-performance CE. Controlled amounts of negatively charged and positively charged functional groups were attached to the sidewall of chirality-enriched SWCNTs through covalent functionalization using 4-carboxybenzenediazonium tetrafluoroborate or 4-diazo-N,N-diethylaniline tetrafluoroborate, respectively. Surfactant- and pH-dependent studies confirmed that under conditions that minimized ionic screening effects, separation of these functionalized SWCNTs was strongly dependent on the surface charge density introduced through covalent surface chemistry. For both heterogeneous mixtures and single-chirality-enriched samples, covalently functionalized SWCNTs showed substantially increased peak width in electropherogram spectra compared to nonfunctionalized SWCNTs, which can be attributed to a distribution of surface charges along the functionalized nanotubes. Successful separation of functionalized single-chirality SWCNTs by functional density was confirmed with UV-Vis-NIR absorption and Raman scattering spectroscopies of fraction collected samples. These results suggest a high degree of structural heterogeneity in covalently functionalized SWCNTs, even for chirality-enriched samples, and show the feasibility of applying CE for high-performance separation of nanomaterials based on differences in surface functional density.

A multiple gadolinium complex decorated fullerene as a highly sensitive T(1) contrast agent.

We report a simple strategy to construct a multiple gadolinium complex decorated fullerene (CGDn) as an enhanced T1 contrast agent. The CGDn exhibits much higher T1 relaxivity (∼49.7 mM(-1) s(-1)) than individual Gd-DOTA, and shows excellent T1 contrast enhancement ability both in vitro and in vivo.

Ultra-bright alkylated graphene quantum dots.

Highly efficient and stable photoluminescence (PL) are urgently desired for graphene quantum dots (GQDs) to facilitate their prospective applications as optical materials. Here, we report the facile and straightforward synthesis of alkylated graphene quantum dots (AGQDs) via the solvothermal reaction of propagatively alkylated graphene sheets (PAGenes). In contrast to most GQDs reported so far, the synthesized AGQDs process pH-independent and ultra-bright PL with a relative quantum yield of up to 65%. Structural and chemical composition characterization demonstrated that the synthesized AGQDs are nearly oxygen-defect-free with alkyl groups decorated on edges and basal plane, which may contribute to their greatly improved pH tolerance and high quantum efficiency. The photocatalytic performance of AGQDs-P25 nanocomposites was evaluated by the degradation of Rhodamine B under visible light. The photocatalytic rate is ca. 5.9 times higher than that of pure P25, indicating that AGQDs could harness the visible spectrum of sunlight for energy conversion or environmental therapy.

Facile and straightforward synthesis of superparamagnetic reduced graphene oxide-Fe3O4 hybrid composite by a solvothermal reaction.

A superparamagnetic reduced graphene oxide-Fe(3)O(4) hybrid composite (rGO-Fe(3)O(4)) was prepared via a facile and straightforward method through the solvothermal reaction of iron (III) acetylacetonate (Fe(acac)(3)) and graphene oxide (GO) in ethylenediamine (EDA) and water. By this method, chemical reduction of GO as well as the formation of Fe(3)O(4) nanoparticles (NPs) can be achieved in one step. The Fe(3)O(4) NPs are firmly deposited on the surfaces of rGO, avoiding their reassembly to graphite. The rGO sheets prevent the agglomeration of Fe(3)O(4) NPs and enable a uniform dispersion of these metal oxide particles. The size distribution and coverage density of Fe(3)O(4) NPs deposited on rGO can be controlled by varying the initial mass ratio of GO and iron precursor, Fe(acac)(3). With an initial mass ratio of GO and Fe(acac)(3) of 5:5, the surfaces of rGO sheets are densely covered by spherical Fe(3)O(4) NPs with an average size of 19.9 nm. The magnetic-functionalized rGO hybrid exhibits a good magnetic property and the specific saturation magnetization (M(s)) is 13.2 emu g(-1). The adsorption test of methylene blue from aqueous solution demonstrates the potential application of this rGO-Fe(3)O(4) hybrid composite in removing organic dyes from polluted water.

Activation of boron nitride nanotubes and their polymer composites for improving mechanical performance.

Boron nitride nanotubes (BNNTs) are inappropriate for further chemical derivatization because of their chemical inertness. We demonstrate covalent activation of chemically inert BNNTs by isophorone diisocyanate (IPDI) to form isocyanate group (NCO)-terminated BNNT precursors with an 'NCO anchor' ready for further functionalization. As identified by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, a number of molecules or polymers with -COOH, -OH or -NH2 groups are readily attached to the activated IPDI-BNNTs. The IPDI-BNNT-involving polymer composites have shown mechanical properties are considerably improved due to the good dispersibility of IPDI-BNNTs in the polymer matrix and the strong interfacial interactions between BNNTs and polymers. The methodology reported here provides a promising method to promote the chemical reactivity of BNNTs and covalently modify polymer nanocomposites with improved mechanical performance.

Confined propagation of covalent chemical reactions on single-walled carbon nanotubes.

Covalent chemistry typically occurs randomly on the graphene lattice of a carbon nanotube because electrons are delocalized over thousands of atomic sites, and rapidly destroys the electrical and optical properties of the nanotube. Here we show that the Billups-Birch reductive alkylation, a variant of the nearly century-old Birch reduction, occurs on single-walled carbon nanotubes by defect activation and propagates exclusively from sp(3) defect sites, with an estimated probability more than 1,300 times higher than otherwise random bonding to the 'π-electron sea'. This mechanism quickly leads to confinement of the reaction fronts in the tubular direction. The confinement gives rise to a series of interesting phenomena, including clustered distributions of the functional groups and a constant propagation rate of 18 ± 6 nm per reaction cycle that allows straightforward control of the spatial pattern of functional groups on the nanometre length scale.

Diameter-dependent, progressive alkylcarboxylation of single-walled carbon nanotubes.

We demonstrate diameter-dependent, progressive alkylcarboxylation of single-walled carbon nanotubes by recycling a modified Billups-Birch reaction. The strong diameter dependence was confirmed by Raman spectroscopy. Alkylcarboxylation made SWNTs soluble in water, allowing the more readily functionalized, smaller diameter nanotubes to be enriched by water extraction.

Outer wall selectively oxidized, water-soluble double-walled carbon nanotubes.

The outer walls of double-walled carbon nanotubes (DWNTs) were selectively oxidized using a combination of oleum and nitric acid. Intercalation of oleum between bundled DWNTs enabled a homogeneous reaction by equally exposing all outer wall surfaces to the oxidants. At optimized reaction conditions, this double-wall chemistry enabled high water solubility through carboxylic acid functional groups introduced to the outer wall, while leaving the inner tube intact, as shown by Raman scattering and high resolution TEM. These outer wall selectively oxidized DWNTs retained electrical conductivity up to 65% better than thin films of similarly functionalized single-walled carbon nanotubes, which can be attributed to enhanced electrical percolation via the nonoxidized inner tubes.