Yatson Chu - University of Ottawa

Placement: University of Waterloo
Supervisor: Dr. Monica Barra


Host/Guest Photochemistry:   Calixarenes as Reaction Media

The objective of this research is to explore the behaviors of organic guest molecules inside the cavities of calixarenes. Calixarenes, which are kinds of cyclic polymer, are made up of the monomers having phenolic and methylenic subunits. The term upper rim is used to describe the rim formed closed to the methylenic bridge, which join the monomers together. The lower rim is the term used to describe the rim that is farther from the methylene bridge. The calixarene used in our experiments has propane-3-sulphonate group substituted on the phenolic hydrogen (Upper rim). Also there is tert-butyl group substituted on the para position of the phenolic subunit (lower rim). The conformation of our cyclic polymer (calixarene) is similar to a basket. According to x-ray structural analysis, the solid state calixarene that we use would have a layered structure. The layers formed between those calixarenes contribute some spaces to trap the organic molecules. That means the guests could be trapped in either the intra or inter molecular space formed by calixarenes.

The guests which are employed in these studies are pyrene, benzil and xanthone. The way we test for the guests behavior inside the cavities is by using fluorescence and laser flash photolysis techniques, and the sample we use are in solid state.


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22-sep-98