Macrocyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons: Covalent-Template Synthesis and Host-Guest Chemistry with Synthetic Carbon Allotropes (A10#)

• Subject Area: Organic Molecular Chemistry - Synthesis and Characterisation
• Term: from 2021 to 2023
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 182849149

The goal of A10 project is to develop two new families of macrocyclic PAHs, which can bind fullerenes, nanotubes, and biologically important guests. In a collaboration with project partners, we have designed a series of new supramolecular hosts, which are constructed from macrocyclic and curved PAHs bearing elementary binding sites (hydrogen bond donors, acceptors or charged groups). Charged and neutral hosts have a confined space ensuring their ability to bind various guest molecules in polar media. In work package WP-1 we will address the challenge how to convert curved PAHs into a macrocyclic structure with excellent solubility. We will study for the first time supramolecular SCA host-guest chemistry of new hosts with fullerenes and nanotubes in aqueous media. We expect to achieve a unique solubilisation activity of new macrocycles towards fullerenes and related guests that will give rise to new Inter-SCA-architectures in polar solutions. In WP-2 we propose to develop a covalent-template approach for the efficient synthesis of macrocyclic PAHs. This approach will deliver not only a new generation of supramolecular hosts containing curved PAHs, but also allow to prepare functionalized macrocyclic PAHs by the detachment of a template. The host-guest chemistry of the new systems with charged and neutral guests will be explored in both organic and aqueous solutions.

• DFG Programme: Collaborative Research Centres
• Subproject of: SFB 953: Synthetic Carbon Allotropes
• Applicant Institution: Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg
• Project Head: Privatdozent Dr. Evgeny Kataev