Carbon nanostructures are important components for technological applications such as high performance composites, lithium storage, photovoltaics, or nanoelectronics.1 Chemical functionalization and control of their nanoscopic morphology would render such structures better processable and suited for tailored applications but is precluded by the prevalent high energy methods for their preparation. We have recently developed a simple wet-chemical approach towards the tailored preparation of functional carbon nanostructures based on novel amphiphiles that comprise hexayne segments as metastable carbon precursors.2 Depending on the head group, these amphiphiles self-assemble into colloidal structures in aqueous dispersion or monolayers with two-dimensional order at the air-water interface. UV irradiation at room temperature is then used to induce a two-dimensional polymerization of the hexaynes. This process results in a virtually complete conversion of the hexayne moieties and, hence, the formation of carbon nanocapsules or carbon nanosheets, respectively.3,4 The thus obtained carbon nanomaterials feature a carbon structure like reduced graphene oxide with a homogenous distribution of tetrahedral carbon defects and chemical functions, a molecularly defined thickness of less than 2 nm, and controlled lateral dimensions. The novel process will thus give access to novel 2D carbon nanomaterials with technological applications ranging from atomically dense surface coatings or diffusion barrier layers to energy storage or bio-mimicking "carbosomes". (1) Hoheisel, T. N.; Schrettl, S.; Szilluweit, R.; Frauenrath, H. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2010, 49, 6496. (2) Schrettl, S.; Contal, E.; Hoheisel, T. N.; Fritzsche, M.; Balog, S.; Szilluweit, R.; Frauenrath, H. Chem. Sci. 2015, 6, 564. (3) Szilluweit, R.; Hoheisel, T. N.; Fritzsche, M.; Ketterer, B.; Fontcuberta i Morral, A.; Demurtas, D.; Laporte, V.; Verel, R.; Bolisetty, S.; Mezzenga, R.; Frauenrath, H. Nano Lett. 2012, 12, 2573. (4) Schrettl, S.; Stefaniu, C.; Schwieger, C.; Pasche, G.; Oveisi, E.; Fontana, Y.; Morral, A. F. i.; Reguera, J.; Petraglia, R.; Corminboeuf, C.; Brezesinski, G.; Frauenrath, H. Nature Chem. 2014, 6, 468.

Tailored carbon nanomaterials prepared from reactive molecular precursors at room temperature

251st National Meeting (2016)

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