Triptycene‐Roofed Quinoxaline Cavitands for the Supramolecular Detection of BTEX in Air |
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| Authors: | Dr Federico Bertani Nicolò Riboni Prof Federica Bianchi Dr Giovanna Brancatelli Dr Elizabeth S Sterner Dr Roberta Pinalli Prof Silvano Geremia Prof Timothy M Swager Prof Enrico Dalcanale |
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| Institution: | 1. Department of Chemistry, University of Parma, Parma, Italy;2. Department of Chemistry, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA;3. Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Trieste, Trieste, Italy |
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| Abstract: | Two novel triptycene quinoxaline cavitands ( DiTriptyQxCav and MonoTriptyQxCav ) have been designed, synthesized, and applied in the supramolecular detection of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylenes (BTEX) in air. The complexation properties of the two cavitands towards aromatics in the solid state are strengthened by the presence of the triptycene moieties at the upper rim of the tetraquinoxaline walls, promoting the confinement of the aromatic hydrocarbons within the cavity. The two cavitands were used as fiber coatings for solid‐phase microextraction (SPME) BTEX monitoring in air. The best performances in terms of enrichment factors, selectivity, and LOD (limit of detection) values were obtained by using the DiTriptyQxCav coating. The corresponding SPME fiber was successfully tested under real urban monitoring conditions, outperforming the commercial divinylbenzene–Carboxen–polydimethylsiloxane (DVB–CAR–PDMS) fiber in BTEX adsorption. |
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| Keywords: | cavitands environmental monitoring host– guest systems solid-phase microextraction volatile organic compounds |
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