PhthaloSupra · Exploiting supramolecular interactions in phthalocyanine chemistry

Exploiting supramolecular interactions in phthalocyanine chemistry

"Objective: During the MSCA fellowship carried out in the Department of Organic Chemistry at the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (UAM), Spain, the Fellow was actively engaged in the synthesis, characterization and study of novel phthalocyanine (Pc) and Pc-cyclopenta[hi]aceantrylene (CPA)-based systems. The present project aims at the formation of stable Pc- and Pc-CPA-based supramolecular polymers through the combination of π-stacking and hydrogen bonding interactions “simultaneously” working in a controlled fashion. During PhthaloSupra, the researcher successfully synthesized and characterized the structures initially proposed, and, in most of the cases, the evaluation of their photophysical properties and aggregation capability studied. We encountered several difficulties during the synthetic work, problems that, in most of the cases, we successfully overcome. As part of PhthaloSupra, we also extended the idea of supramolecular systems solely based on CPA dimers, where both CPA units were linked by either one (1TB), two (2TB) or four (4TB) triple bonds. These CPA dimers were expected to form highly conjugated systems due to the acetylenic spacer(s) connecting the two units. The synthesis of these dimers was challenging due to the reduced solubility of some of the CPA precursors and mainly involved Sonogashira coupling reactions. Impact on society: PhthaloSupra was set on an ambitious goal involving the interdisciplinary fields of molecular materials and supramolecular chemistry, encompassing the preparation and study of novel Pc-based functional materials using noncovalent interactions. During my stay in Prof. Torres group, I enjoyed a good relationship with the supervisor and a good research environment, which helps in fulfilment of contractual and legal obligations. I got a chance to supervise a graduate student and an interaction on daily basis with doctoral students and post-doctoral colleagues within the Torres’ group, collaborating on common projects. I also got a chance to attend several workshops organised by IMDEA Nanociencia, Madrid. The output of the research gave rise to short-term benefits in terms of a deeper understanding of the relationship between structure, self-organization, morphology and physical (i.e., light-harvesting, electrochemical, charge separation and transport) properties of the molecular and supramolecular systems prepared. Medium- and long-term benefits will stem from the collaboration studies that are still under progress. The study and application of these new materials in the field of photovoltaic technologies such as DSSC, OPV etc, are under progress, hopefully, contributing to advance in one of the most importantly societal challenge such as the production of “Secure, clean and efficient energy”. The progress and the results of the studies carried out in PhthaloSupra generated a pile of interesting results and soon it will be disseminated to the scientific community through publications in high-level international science. As a further channel of dissemination, I attended two international conferences (12th International Symposium on Supramolecular and Macrocyclic Chemistry (ISMSC), June 2019, Lecce, Italy; and 3rd International Symposium on ''the Synthesis and Application of Curved Organic π-Molecules & Materials (CURO-π³)"", 5–7 September 2018, University of Oxford, United Kingdom) where I got the chance to communicate and discuss the results obtained to some of the best researchers in the fields of Pc and supramolecular chemistry. I also participated in the European Research Night (2018), Madrid, a MSCA action, under the Horizon 2020 specific programme. We strongly believe that such outreach activities are extremely important to fill the gap that sometimes exists between science and technology, and the non-specialized public."

Текст от CORDIS, на английски · Данни: CORDIS, © Европейски съюз