Chemical fuel-driven transient 2D supramolecular organic frameworks (SOFs): catalysis for green synthesis

Abstract

Mimicking the dissipative assemblies found in living systems fueled by bioenergy, we present a novel chemical fuel-driven transient 2D SOF, formed via the redox reaction-driven transient self-assembly of tetraphenylene-based structural units and cucurbit[8]uril (CB[8]). The system was initiated by adding sodium dithionite (SDT) as the fuel, leading to the formation of 2D SOFs through 2 : 1 host–guest complexation between the viologen cation radical and CB[8]. These 2D SOFs then spontaneously disassemble over time as the radicals are oxidized by air. The temporal assembly and lifetimes of these transient SOFs can be controlled by adjusting the concentrations of the fuel. Moreover, the resulting transient 2D SOFs exhibited remarkable potential as catalysts for the green synthesis of benzyl sulfones in water.