Supramolecular Chemistry-Based One-Pot High-Efficiency Separation of Solubilizer-Free Pure Semiconducting Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes: Molecular Strategy and Mechanism

• Published in: Journal of the American Chemical Society 2020-07, Vol.142 (27), p.11847-11856
• Main Authors: Nakashima, Naotoshi, Fukuzawa, Masashi, Nishimura, Kanako, Fujigaya, Tsuyohiko, Kato, Yuichi, Staykov, Aleksandar
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0002-7863; 1520-5126
• DOI: 10.1021/jacs.0c03994

Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) have the potential to revolutionize nanoscale electronics and power sources; however, their low purity and high separation cost limit their use in practical applications. Here we present a supramolecular chemistry-based one-pot, less expensive, scalable, and highly efficient separation of a solubilizer/adsorbent-free pure semiconducting SWCNT (sc-SWCNT) using flavin/isoalloxazine analogues with different substituents. On the basis of both experimental and computational simulations (DFT study), we have revealed the molecular requirements of the solubilizers as well as provided a possible mechanism for such a highly efficient selective sc-SWCNT separation. The present sorting method is very simple (one-pot) and gives a promising sc-SWCNT separation methodology. Thus, the study provides insight for the molecular design of an sc-SWCNT solubilizer with a high (n,m)-chiral selectivity, which benefits many areas including semiconducting nanoelectronics, thermoelectric, bio and energy materials, and devices using solubilizer-free very pure sc-SWCNTs.