May 2 2019
Researchers have put forth a new concept of ordered-assembly reaction (OAR), which integrated quantum-confined superfluid (QSF) concept with frontier molecular orbital (FMO) theory.
Nanoconfined Ordered-Assembly Reaction (Image credit: ZHANG Xiqi)
The research paper was published in Adv. Mater. Interfaces.
Quite recently, a study team led by Prof. JIANG Lei and Dr. ZHANG Xiqi from Technical Institute of Physics and Chemistry of the Chinese Academy of Sciences suggested a new concept of OAR to comprehend the fundamental mechanism of high-performance 1D nanoconfined chemical reactions.
Earlier, 1D nanoconfined chemical reactions displayed enhanced performance, which is attributed to the nanoconfinement. However, the fundamental mechanism of this nanoconfinement-optimized performance remains indistinct, and becomes a perplexing problem to be solved.
In this research, the viewpoints on 1D nanoconfined chemical reactions including organic syntheses and polymerization are given, followed by the 1D nanoconfined preassembled reactions. Then, the QSF concept is presented, which exemplifies an enthalpy-driven confined ordered fluid.
Enthused by the programmed-assembly reaction in living organisms, a new theory of OAR is suggested, which looks at such a reaction process that reactant molecules rapidly travel through nanochannels in a directional flow with specific order and molecular configuration.
The OAR concept will not only offer insight on the intrinsic mechanism of nanoconfinement-improved performance, but also boost the progress of nanoconfined chemical reactions.
This research is aided by the National Key R&D program of China, the National Natural Science Foundation of China, and the 111 Project.