Nicholas Yu. Borovkov

Nanoaggregates of copper porphyrazine in floating layers and Langmuir-Schaefer films.

Aggregation behavior of unsubstituted copper porphyrazine (CuPaz) on the water surface was studied by analysis of compression curves, Brewster angle microscopy (BAM), and optical spectroscopy. The structure and stability of the CuPaz aqua aggregates in the floating layers are determined by hydration degree that depends on initial surface concentration and surface pressure. Langmuir-Schaefer (LS) films of CuPaz were prepared by deposition of the variously structured floating layers and studied by X-ray scattering technique and optical spectroscopy. Stable and labile structures were detected and compared with the floating CuPaz aqua aggregates. Conditions of formation of the stable four-stacked nanoaggregates in LS films were determined. A model comprising both nucleation of CuPaz on the water surface and structural transformations in the solid films is proposed.

Influence of molecular and supramolecular factors on sensor properties of Langmuir–Blodgett films of tert-butyl-substituted copper azaporphyrines towards hydrocarbons

Abstract Langmuir–Blodgett (LB) films of tert -butyl-substituted copper azaporphyrines, namely binuclear phthalocyanine (Cu 2 Pc 2 ’) and porphyrazine (CuPaz’), were formed from the floating layers differently structured. Effect of the film structure on sorption of benzene and hexane by the LB films was studied microgravimetrically. The greatest benzene/hexane selectivity was found for the homogeneous film of Cu 2 Pc 2 ’.

Fullerene–Naphthalene Interaction on the Water Surface and in the Binary Film

Abstract This work continues the studies on the non‐covalent fullerene–donor interaction that were recently conducted by non‐spectroscopic methods in solution. The Langmuir–Blodgett (LB) technique is engaged as a main experimental tool to exclude interfering solvent effects. Methods to prepare a stable low‐dimensional fullerene–water system and to monitor intermolecular interactions therein are proposed. As a molecular partner of fullerene, β‐benzylnaphthalene (BN) modeling a functional π‐donor is used. No pair C60–BN interactions were found in both C60–BN–H2O and C60–BN systems. Thus, a lack of molecular affinity of fullerene for typical π‐donors is stated not only in solution but in solvent‐free systems as well. For this reason, none of classic non‐covalent interactions can be exploited to control the state of fullerene in solid composites.

On the Nature of Interaction Between Fullerene and Aniline

Abstract Interaction between fullerene C60 and N,N‐dialkyl‐substituted anilines was studied by gas–liquid chromatography (GLC) and titration calorimetry. The GLC study was performed at 140–200°C in the poly(tetramethylbenzene) solvent with ultra‐high solubility of C60. No interaction of the C60–aniline type was registered under such conditions. Calorimetric titration performed at 25°C in a non‐aromatic solvent confirmed the lack of complex formation. Minute exoeffect registered is explained by suppressing of the rotation motion of the C60 molecules accompanied by energy dissipation for the aniline environment.

Thermochemical Insights into Fullerene Aggregation and the Phthalocyanine-Fullerene Interaction in Efficient Solvents

The physicochemical behavior of fullerene C60 in hydrocarbon solvents is examined by isothermal titration calorimetry, photocalorimetry, and UV spectroscopy. The obtained data are summarized to substantiate the idea of the binary fullerene/solvent cluster as a colloidal nanoentity that moderates noncovalent interactions of the C60 molecule in solution. This idea serves to aid understanding of the complex physicochemical behavior of tert-butyl-substituted phthalocyanine in C60 -saturated o-xylene under illumination with low-energy photons. The proposed experimental approach, which focuses on concentrated solutions and is applicable to multicomponent systems, is discussed as a potential tool of materials science.