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Huss S, Wu S, Chen B, Wang T, Gerthoffer MC, Ryan DJ, Smith SE, Crespi VH, Badding JV, Elacqua E. Scalable Synthesis of Crystalline One-Dimensional Carbon Nanothreads through Modest-Pressure Polymerization of Furan. ACS NANO 2021; 15:4134-4143. [PMID: 33470790 DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.0c10400] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Carbon nanothreads, which are one-dimensional sp3-rich polymers, combine high tensile strength with flexibility owing to subnanometer widths and diamond-like cores. These extended carbon solids are constructed through pressure-induced polymerization of sp2 molecules such as benzene. Whereas a few examples of carbon nanothreads have been reported, the need for high onset pressures (≥17 GPa) to synthesize them precludes scalability and limits scope. Herein, we report the scalable synthesis of carbon nanothreads based on molecular furan, which can be achieved through ambient temperature pressure-induced polymerization with an onset reaction pressure of only 10 GPa due to its lessened aromaticity relative to other molecular precursors. When slowly compressed to 15 GPa and gradually decompressed to 1.5 GPa, a sharp 6-fold diffraction pattern is observed in situ, indicating a well-ordered crystalline material formed from liquid furan. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction (XRD) of the reaction product exhibits three distinct d-spacings from 4.75 to 4.9 Å, whose size, angular spacing, and degree of anisotropy are consistent with our atomistic simulations for crystals of furan nanothreads. Further evidence for polymerization was obtained by powder XRD, Raman/IR spectroscopy, and mass spectrometry. Comparison of the IR spectra with computed vibrational modes provides provisional identification of spectral features characteristic of specific nanothread structures, namely syn, anti, and syn/anti configurations. Mass spectrometry suggests that molecular weights of at least 6 kDa are possible. Furan therefore presents a strategic entry toward scalable carbon nanothreads.
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Affiliation(s)
- Steven Huss
- Department of Chemistry, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
| | - Sikai Wu
- Department of Chemistry, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
| | - Bo Chen
- Department of Chemistry, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Cornell University, Baker Laboratory, Ithaca, New York 14853, United States
- Donostia International Physics Center, Paseo Manuel de Lardizabal, 4, 20018 Donostia, San Sebastian, Spain
- Basque Foundation for Science, Maria Diaz de Haro 3, 48013 Bilbao, Spain
| | - Tao Wang
- Department of Physics, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
| | - Margaret C Gerthoffer
- Department of Chemistry, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
| | - Daniel J Ryan
- ExxonMobil Research and Engineering Company, Annandale, New Jersey 08801, United States
| | - Stuart E Smith
- ExxonMobil Research and Engineering Company, Annandale, New Jersey 08801, United States
| | - Vincent H Crespi
- Department of Chemistry, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
- Materials Research Institute, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
- Department of Physics, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
| | - John V Badding
- Department of Chemistry, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
- Materials Research Institute, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
- Department of Physics, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
| | - Elizabeth Elacqua
- Department of Chemistry, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
- Materials Research Institute, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
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2
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Wang T, Duan P, Xu ES, Vermilyea B, Chen B, Li X, Badding JV, Schmidt-Rohr K, Crespi VH. Constraining Carbon Nanothread Structures by Experimental and Calculated Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectra. NANO LETTERS 2018; 18:4934-4942. [PMID: 29954179 DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.8b01736] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
A one-dimensional (1D) sp3 carbon nanomaterial with high lateral packing order, known as carbon nanothreads, has recently been synthesized by slowly compressing and decompressing crystalline solid benzene at high pressure. The atomic structure of an individual nanothread has not yet been determined experimentally. We have calculated the 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) chemical shifts, chemical shielding tensors, and anisotropies of several axially ordered and disordered partially saturated and fully saturated nanothreads within density functional theory and systematically compared the results with experimental solid-state NMR data to assist in identifying the structures of the synthesized nanothreads. In the fully saturated threads, every carbon atom in each progenitor benzene molecule has bonded to a neighboring molecule (i.e., 6 bonds per molecule, a so-called "degree-6" nanothread), while the partially saturated threads examined retain a single double bond per benzene ring ("degree-4"). The most-parsimonious theoretical fit to the experimental 1D solid-state NMR spectrum, constrained by the measured chemical shift anisotropies and key features of two-dimensional NMR spectra, suggests a certain combination of degree-4 and degree-6 nanothreads as plausible components of this 1D sp3 carbon nanomaterial, with intriguing hints of a [4 + 2] cycloaddition pathway toward nanothread formation from benzene columns in the progenitor molecular crystal, based on the presence of nanothreads IV-7, IV-8, and square polymer in the minimal fit.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Pu Duan
- Department of Chemistry , Brandeis University , Waltham , Massachusetts 02453 , United States
| | | | | | - Bo Chen
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology , Cornell University , Baker Laboratory , Ithaca , New York 14853 , United States
| | | | | | - Klaus Schmidt-Rohr
- Department of Chemistry , Brandeis University , Waltham , Massachusetts 02453 , United States
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Gao J, Zhang G, Yakobson BI, Zhang YW. Kinetic theory for the formation of diamond nanothreads with desired configurations: a strain-temperature controlled phase diagram. NANOSCALE 2018; 10:9664-9672. [PMID: 29761202 DOI: 10.1039/c8nr00308d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Diamond nanothreads (DNTs) are a brand-new one-dimensional carbon nanomaterial that was synthesized recently by compressing benzene. Compared with sp2 carbon nanotubes, DNTs may possess a much higher interfacial load-transfer ability. However, previous studies have shown that the mechanical properties of DNTs are highly sensitive to the composition of Stone-Wales (SW) transformed sites. Up to now, it remained unclear what roles SWs play in the structure stability and how to engineer its molecular structure for novel mechanical properties. Using ab initio calculations, here we show that the most stable structure of a DNT is composed of alternative SW and hydrogenated carbon nanotube (3,0) units, suggesting that SW plays an essential role in stabilizing DNT. Interestingly, we found that the SW transition barrier is a nearly linear function of the applied strain, enabling strain engineering of its molecular structure. To do so, we propose a strain-temperature-stretching rate phase diagram to guide the construction of desired molecular structures to achieve superplastic behavior of DNTs. Our findings not only enrich our understanding of this novel carbon material, but also provide a strategy to control its structural and mechanical properties for novel applications, such as energy absorption, energy storage and materials reinforcement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Junfeng Gao
- Institute of High Performance Computing, A*STAR, Singapore 138632.
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Li X, Baldini M, Wang T, Chen B, Xu ES, Vermilyea B, Crespi VH, Hoffmann R, Molaison JJ, Tulk CA, Guthrie M, Sinogeikin S, Badding JV. Mechanochemical Synthesis of Carbon Nanothread Single Crystals. J Am Chem Soc 2017; 139:16343-16349. [PMID: 29040804 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.7b09311] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
Synthesis of well-ordered reduced dimensional carbon solids with extended bonding remains a challenge. For example, few single-crystal organic monomers react under topochemical control to produce single-crystal extended solids. We report a mechanochemical synthesis in which slow compression at room temperature under uniaxial stress can convert polycrystalline or single-crystal benzene monomer into single-crystalline packings of carbon nanothreads, a one-dimensional sp3 carbon nanomaterial. The long-range order over hundreds of microns of these crystals allows them to readily exfoliate into fibers. The mechanochemical reaction produces macroscopic single crystals despite large dimensional changes caused by the formation of multiple strong, covalent C-C bonds to each monomer and a lack of reactant single-crystal order. Therefore, it appears not to follow a topochemical pathway, but rather one guided by uniaxial stress, to which the nanothreads consistently align. Slow-compression room-temperature synthesis may allow diverse molecular monomers to form single-crystalline packings of polymers, threads, and higher dimensional carbon networks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiang Li
- Department of Chemistry, Pennsylvania State University , University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States.,Materials Research Institute, Pennsylvania State University , University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
| | - Maria Baldini
- Geophysical Laboratory, Carnegie Institution of Washington, Advanced Photon Source, Argonne National Laboratory , Argonne, Illinois 60439, United States
| | - Tao Wang
- Materials Research Institute, Pennsylvania State University , University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States.,Department of Physics, Pennsylvania State University , University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
| | - Bo Chen
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Baker Laboratory, Cornell University , Ithaca, New York 14853-1301, United States
| | - En-Shi Xu
- Materials Research Institute, Pennsylvania State University , University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States.,Department of Physics, Pennsylvania State University , University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
| | - Brian Vermilyea
- Materials Research Institute, Pennsylvania State University , University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States.,Department of Physics, Pennsylvania State University , University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
| | - Vincent H Crespi
- Department of Chemistry, Pennsylvania State University , University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States.,Materials Research Institute, Pennsylvania State University , University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States.,Department of Physics, Pennsylvania State University , University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States.,Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Pennsylvania State University , University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
| | - Roald Hoffmann
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Baker Laboratory, Cornell University , Ithaca, New York 14853-1301, United States
| | - Jamie J Molaison
- Neutron Sciences Directorate, Oak Ridge National Laboratory , Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37830, United States
| | - Christopher A Tulk
- Neutron Sciences Directorate, Oak Ridge National Laboratory , Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37830, United States
| | - Malcolm Guthrie
- European Spallation Source, ESS ERIC , SE-22100 Lund, Sweden
| | - Stanislav Sinogeikin
- High Pressure Collaborative Access Team, Geophysical Laboratory, Carnegie Institution of Washington, Argonne National Laboratory , Argonne, Illinois 60439, United States
| | - John V Badding
- Department of Chemistry, Pennsylvania State University , University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States.,Materials Research Institute, Pennsylvania State University , University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States.,Department of Physics, Pennsylvania State University , University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States.,Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Pennsylvania State University , University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States
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5
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Chen B, Hoffmann R, Ashcroft NW, Badding J, Xu E, Crespi V. Linearly Polymerized Benzene Arrays As Intermediates, Tracing Pathways to Carbon Nanothreads. J Am Chem Soc 2015; 137:14373-86. [PMID: 26488180 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.5b09053] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
How might fully saturated benzene polymers of composition [(CH)6]n form under high pressure? In the first approach to answering this question, we examine the stepwise increase in saturation of a one-dimensional stack of benzene molecules by enumerating the partially saturated polymer intermediates, subject to constraints of unit cell size and energy. Defining the number of four-coordinate carbon atoms per benzene formula unit as the degree of saturation, a set of isomers for degree-two and degree-four polymers can be generated by either thinking of the propagation of partially saturated building blocks or by considering a sequence of cycloadditions. There is also one 4 + 2 reaction sequence that jumps directly from a benzene stack to a degree-four polymer. The set of degree-two polymers provides several useful signposts toward achieving full saturation: chiral versus achiral building blocks, certain forms of conformational freedom, and also dead ends to further saturation. These insights allow us to generate a larger set of degree-four polymers and enumerate the many pathways that lead from benzene stacks to completely saturated carbon nanothreads.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bo Chen
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Cornell University, Baker Laboratory , Ithaca, New York 14853-1301, United States
| | - Roald Hoffmann
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Cornell University, Baker Laboratory , Ithaca, New York 14853-1301, United States
| | - N W Ashcroft
- Laboratory of Atomic and Solid State Physics, Cornell University , Ithaca, New York 14850, United States
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Nicolaï A, Liu H, Petraglia R, Corminboeuf C. Exploiting Dispersion-Driven Aggregators as a Route to New One-Dimensional Organic Nanowires. J Phys Chem Lett 2015; 6:4422-4428. [PMID: 26495880 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpclett.5b01700] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
The efficiency of charge carrier mobility in organic semiconductors is heavily dependent upon the long-range organization (i.e., morphology) and the local relative arrangement of the transporting molecules. Here, we exploit London dispersion forces as a design principle to construct compact one-dimensional (1-D) assemblies of quaterthiophene cores. We demonstrate that the substitution of quaterthiophene with dispersion-driven aggregators (e.g., [7]ladderanes, hydrogenated pyrenes, etc.) leads to the formation of highly stable and tightly packed 1-D supramolecular assemblies with electronic compactness superior to that of quaterthiophene crystals. Tunability and even tighter stacking arrangements can be achieved by inserting molecular linkers between the quaterthiophene fragments and the dispersion-driven components. The proposed 1-D nanowires represent an original route toward the rational design of efficient organic semiconductors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adrien Nicolaï
- Laboratory for Computational Molecular Design, Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne , CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Hongguang Liu
- Laboratory for Computational Molecular Design, Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne , CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Riccardo Petraglia
- Laboratory for Computational Molecular Design, Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne , CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Clémence Corminboeuf
- Laboratory for Computational Molecular Design, Institut des Sciences et Ingénierie Chimiques, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne , CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
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