Properties of Fullerene[50] andD5hDecachlorofullerene[50]: A Computational Study

Size-Dependent Fullerenes for Enhanced Interaction of l-Leucine: A Combined DFT and MD Simulations Approach

Fullerene-based biosensors have received great attention due to their unique electronic properties that allow them to transduce electrical signals by accepting electrons from amino acids. Babies with MSUD (maple syrup urine disease) are unable to break down amino acids such as l-leucine, and excess levels of the l-leucine are harmful. Therefore, sensing of l-leucine is foremost required. We aim to investigate the interaction tendencies of size-variable fullerenes (CX; X = 24, 36, 50, and 70) toward l-leucine (LEU) using density functional theory (DFT-D3) and classical molecular dynamics (MD) simulation. The C24 fullerene shows the highest affinity of the LEU biomolecule in the gas phase. Smaller fullerenes (C24 and C36) show stronger interactions with leucine due to their higher curvature in water environments. Moreover, recovery times in the ranges of 1010 and 104 s make it a viable candidate for the isolation application of LEU from the biological system. Further, the interaction between LEU and fullerenes is in line with the natural bond order (NBO) analysis, Mulliken charge analysis, quantum theory atom in molecule (QTAIM) analysis, and reduced density gradient (RDG) analysis. At 310 K, employing the explicit water model in classical MD simulations, fullerenes C24 and C36 demonstrate notably elevated binding free energies (-24.946 kJ/mol) in relation to LEU, showcasing their potential as sensors for l-leucine. Here, we demonstrate that the smaller fullerene exhibits a higher potential for l-leucine sensors than the larger fullerene.

Strain Release of Fused Pentagons in Fullerene Cages by Chemical Functionalization

According to the isolated pentagon rule (IPR), for stable fullerenes, the 12 pentagons should be isolated from one another by hexagons, otherwise the fused pentagons will result in an increase in the local steric strain of the fullerene cage. However, the successful isolation of more than 100 endohedral and exohedral fullerenes containing fused pentagons over the past 20 years has shown that strain release of fused pentagons in fullerene cages is feasible. Herein, we present a general overview on fused-pentagon-containing (i.e. non-IPR) fullerenes through an exhaustive review of all the types of fused-pentagon-containing fullerenes reported to date. We clarify how the strain of fused pentagons can be released in different manners, and provide an in-depth understanding of the role of fused pentagons in the stability, electronic properties, and chemical reactivity of fullerene cages.

C50Cl10, a planar aromatic fullerene. Computational study of 13C-NMR chemical shift anisotropy patterns and aromatic properties

The structural characterization of D_5h-C₅₀Cl₁₀ as an IPR-violating fullerene provides an interesting case of an oblate structure displaying a planar-aromatic character provided by the face-to-face disposition of two IPR structural motifs, as unraveled by DFT calculations.

The shielding cone in spherical aromatic structures: insights from models for spherical 2(N + 1)2 aromatic fullerenes

The shielding cone in spherical aromatic fullerenes is of long-range character and permits multiple orientations.

Characterization of the fullerene end-functionalized ZnO nanotube: A computational study

The electronic and field emission properties of the fullerene end-functionalized zinc oxide nanotube (ZnONT) are investigated by density functional theory (DFT) to search for novel field emitter nano material. The interaction energies of ZnONT/fullerenes complexes gradually increase, with increasing the nanotube lengths which indicate that ZnONTs with higher lengths could improve the stability of the complexes. The band gaps of connected construction of fullerene molecules with ZnONTs gradually reduced by increasing the tube length, but were not sensitive to the tubes diameter. It is found that the ionization potentials of ZnONT/fullerenes complexes mainly decrease compared to that of pristine nanotube in the presence of 0, 0.002, 0.004[Formula: see text]a.u. electric field. The reduction of the ionization potential means the enhancement of the field emission properties of ZnONT/fullerenes complexes compared with simple ZnONT and fullerene molecules. The calculations show that the combination of ZnONT with fullerene molecules indeed improves the field emission by controlling the tube size and electric field strength.

Is C50 a superaromat? Evidence from electronic structure and ring current calculations

Of the three lowest isomers of C₅₀ fullerene, the minimal energy D₃ isomer comes closest to a spherical aromat or superaromat.

The topology of fullerenes

Fullerenes are carbon molecules that form polyhedral cages. Their bond structures are exactly the planar cubic graphs that have only pentagon and hexagon faces. Strikingly, a number of chemical properties of a fullerene can be derived from its graph structure. A rich mathematics of cubic planar graphs and fullerene graphs has grown since they were studied by Goldberg, Coxeter, and others in the early 20th century, and many mathematical properties of fullerenes have found simple and beautiful solutions. Yet many interesting chemical and mathematical problems in the field remain open. In this paper, we present a general overview of recent topological and graph theoretical developments in fullerene research over the past two decades, describing both solved and open problems. WIREs Comput Mol Sci 2015, 5:96-145. doi: 10.1002/wcms.1207 Conflict of interest: The authors have declared no conflicts of interest for this article. For further resources related to this article, please visit the WIREs website.

From pure C₃₆ fullerene to cagelike nanocluster: a density functional study

The geometrical structures, energetics properties, and aromaticity of C(₃₆-n) Si(n) (n ≤ 18) fullerene-based clusters were studied using density functional theory calculations. The geometries of C(₃₆-n) Si(n) clusters undergo strong structural deformation with the increase of Si substitution. For the most energy favorable structures of C(₃₆-n) Si(n) , the silicon and carbon atoms form two distinct homogeneous segregations. Subsequently, the binding energy, HOMO-LUMO energy gap, vertical ionization potential, vertical electron affinity, and chemical hardness for the energetic favorable C(₃₆-n) Si(n) geometries were computed and analyzed. In addition, the aromatic property of C(₃₆-n) Si(n) cagelike clusters was investigated, and the result demonstrate that these C(₃₆-n) Si(n) cagelike structures possess strong aromaticity.

Electronic structures and optical properties of the IPR-violating C60X8 (X = H, F, and Cl) fullerene compounds: a computational study

Stimulated by the preparation and characterization of the isolated pentagon rule (IPR) violating chlorofullerene: C(60)Cl(8) (Nat. Mater. 2008, 7, 790-794), we have performed a systematic investigation on the structural stabilities, electronic and optical properties of the IPR-violating C(60)X(8) (X = H, F, and Cl) fullerene compounds via density functional theory. The large energy gaps between the highest occupied and the lowest unoccupied molecular orbitals provide a clear indication of high chemical stabilities of C(60)X(8) derivatives, and moreover, the C(60)X(8) molecules present great aromatic character with the negative nucleus independent chemical shift values. In the addition reactions of C(60) (C(2v)) + 4X(2) → C(60)X(8), a series of exothermic processes are involved, with high reaction energies ranging from -71.97 to -233.16 kcal mol(-1). An investigation on the electronic property shows that C(60)F(8) and C(60)Cl(8) could be excellent electron acceptors as a consequence of large vertical electron affinities. The density of state analysis suggests that the frontier molecular orbitals of C(60)X(8) are mainly from the carbon orbitals of two separate annulene subunits, and the influence from X atoms is secondary. In addition, the ultraviolet-visible spectra and second-order hyperpolarizabilities of C(60)X(8) are calculated by means of time-dependent density functional theory and a finite field approach, respectively. Both the average static linear polarizability <α> and second-order hyperpolarizability <γ> of C(60)X(8) increase greatly compared to those of C(60).

Probing the chemical functionalization of single-walled carbon nanotubes with multiple carbon ad-dimer defects

Drying-tube-shaped single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) with multiple carbon ad-dimer (CD) defects are obtained from armchair (n,n,m) SWCNTs (n=4, 5, 6, 7, 8; m=7, 13). According to the isolated-pentagon rule (IPR) the drying-tube-shaped SWCNTs are unstable non-IPR species, and their hydrogenated, fluorinated, and chlorinated derivatives are investigated. Interestingly, chemisorptions of hydrogen, fluorine, and chlorine atoms on the drying tube-shaped SWCNTs are exothermic processes. Compared to the reaction energies for binding of H, F, and Cl atoms to perfect and Stone-Wales-defective armchair (5,5) nanotubes, binding of F with the multiply CD defective SWCNTs is stronger than with perfect and Stone-Wales-defective nanotubes. The reaction energy for per F(2) addition is between 85 and 88 kcal mol(-1) more negative than that per H(2) addition. Electronic structure analysis of their energy gaps shows that the CD defects have a tendency to decrease the energy gap from 1.98-2.52 to 0.80-1.17 eV. After hydrogenation, fluorination, and chlorination, the energy gaps of the drying-tube-shaped SWCNTs with multiple CD defects are substantially increased to 1.65-3.85 eV. Furthermore, analyses of thermodynamic stability and nucleus-independent chemical shifts (NICS) are performed to analyze the stability of these molecules.

Nonclassical fullerenes with a heptagon violating the pentagon adjacency penalty rule

Nonclassical fullerenes with heptagon(s) and their derivatives have attracted increasing attention, and the studies on them are performing to enrich the chemistry of carbon. Density functional theory calculations are performed on nonclassical fullerenes C(n) (n = 46, 48, 50, and 52) to give insight into their structures and stability. The calculated results demonstrate that the classical isomers generally satisfy the pentagon adjacency penalty rule. However, the nonclassical isomers with a heptagon are more energetically favorable than the classical ones with the same number of pentagon-pentagon bonds (B(55) bonds), and many of them are even more stable than some classical isomers with fewer B(55) bonds. The nonclassical isomers with the lowest energy are higher in energy than the classical ones with the lowest energy, because they have more B(55) bonds. Generally, the HOMO-LUMO gaps of the former are larger than those of the latter. The sphericity and asphericity are unable to rationalize the unique stability of the nonclassical fullerenes with a heptagon. The pyramidization angles of the vertices shared by two pentagons and one heptagon are smaller than those of the vertices shared by two pentagons and one hexagon. It is concluded that the strain in the fused pentagons can be released by the adjacent heptagons partly, and consequently, it is a common phenomenon for nonclassical fullerenes to violate the pentagon adjacent penalty rule. These findings are heuristic and conducive to search energetically favorable isomers of C(n), especially as n is 62, 64, 66, and 68, respectively.

A global search for the lowest energy isomer of C(26)

The complete set of 2333 isomers of C(26) fullerene composed of square, pentagonal, hexagonal, and heptagonal faces together with some noncage structures is investigated at the Hartree-Fock and density functional theory (DFT) levels. For the singlet states, a nonclassical isomer C(26)-10-01 with a square embedded is predicted by the DFT method as the lowest energy isomer, followed by the sole classical isomer C(26)-00-01. Further explorations reveal that the electronic ground state of C(26)-10-01 is triplet state in C(s) symmetry, while that of C(26)-00-01 corresponds to its quintet in D(3h) symmetry. Both the total energies and nucleus independent chemical shift values at DFT level favor the classical isomer. It is found that both C(26)-00-01 and C(26)-10-01 possess high vertical electron affinity. The addition of electron(s) to C(26)-10-01 increases its aromatic character and encapsulation of Li atom into this cage is highly exothermic, indicating that it may be captured in the form of derivatives. To clarify the relative stabilities at elevated temperatures, the entropy contributions are taken into account based on the Gibbs free energy at the B3LYP/6-311+G( *) level. C(26)-10-01 behaves thermodynamically more stable than the classical isomer over a wide range of temperatures related to fullerene formation. The IR spectra of these two lowest energy isomers are simulated to facilitate their experimental identification.

Structural stability and electronic property of C68X4 (X=H, F, and Cl) fullerene compounds

A systematic study on the geometrical structures and electronic properties of C(68)X(4) (X=H, F, and Cl) fullerene compounds has been carried out on the basis of density functional theory. In all classical C(68)X(4) isomers with two adjacent pentagons and one quasifullerene isomer [C(s):C(68)(f)] containing a heptagon in the framework, the C(s):0064 isomers are most favorable in energy. The addition reaction energies of C(68)X(4) (C(s):0064) are high exothermic, and C(68)F(4) is more thermodynamically accessible. The C(68)X(4) (C(s):0064) possess strong aromatic character, with nucleus independent chemical shifts ranging from -22.0 to -26.1 ppm. Further investigations on electronic properties indicate that C(68)F(4) and C(68)Cl(4) could be excellent electron-acceptors for potential photonic/photovoltaic applications in consequence of their large vertical electron affinities (3.29 and 3.15 eV, respectively). The Mulliken charge populations and partial density of states are also calculated, which show that decorating C(68) fullerene with various X atoms will cause remarkably different charge distributions in C(68)X(4) (C(s):0064) and affect their electronic properties distinctly. Finally, the infrared spectra of the most stable C(68)X(4) (C(s):0064) molecules are simulated to assist further experimental characterization.

From the molecular behaviors of fullerene derivatives C50X2 (X = H, F, Cl, Br, OH) to the general parallels among isostructural derivatives of fullerenes and carbon nanotubes

A systematic investigation of all possible isomers of fullerene derivatives C50X2 (X = H, F, Cl, Br, OH) has been performed using the semiempirical AM1 method. The equilibrium geometrical structures, heats of formation, HOMO-LUMO energy gaps, ionization potentials, electronic affinities, strain and aromaticity have been studied. The results indicate that the selection rule for two groups adding to fullerene C50 is independent of the type of functional group. The isomer-78, which corresponds to a 1,4-addition at the six-membered ring located on the equator, is the most stable isomer for C50X2 (X = H, F, Cl, Br, OH). The driving force governing the stabilities of the presently studied C50X2 isomers is the strain inherent in the C50 cage. The contribution of the conjugation effect to the stabilization is not able to compete with that of the strain. The more stable C50X2 isomers have larger ionization potentials and smaller electronic affinities compared with C50, which suggests that it is more difficult to oxidize and reduce C50X2 than to oxidize and reduce C50. Energies as well as HOMO-LUMO gaps of isostructural C50X2 (X = H, F, Cl, Br, OH) isomers are almost parallel, i.e., energy differences between isostructural isomers of any two kinds of C50X2 derivatives are constant. This phenomenon can be called H/F/Cl/Br/OH parallels, which may result from the same degree of perturbation for addition of different functional groups to the structure of the parent carbon cage. H/F parallels are generalized characteristics among not only isostructural isomers of fullerenes but also isostructural isomers of carbon nanotubes. Furthermore, it is predictable that general H/F/Cl/Br/OH... parallels may exist among various derivatives of other fullerenes and carbon nanotubes.