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Pillar[5,6]arene-based supramolecular organogels: Self-sorting via shape-complementarity

Supramolecular gels that can be classified as “smart” soft materials have attracted considerable attention in the last two decades, due to their numerous potential applications.¹ Pillararenes, first synthesized by Ogoshi in 2008,² have been used as scaffolds for the preparation of supramolecular gels mostly through host-guest or metal-ligand interactions.³ Here we describe two components supramolecular organogels based on per-carboxylato- and per-amino pillar[6]arenes in various chlorinated organic solvents via non-host-guest interactions. These supramolecular organogels exhibit different characteristics as compared to the pillar[5]arene-based supramolecular organogels recently reported by us .⁴ We found that the formation of these multivalent gelation systems is driven by shape-complementarity. These organogels share specific molecular recognition and are constructed, inter alia, from AB-type organic nano-structures.

1. Fang, W., et al, Chem. Asian J. 2018, 13, 712-727.
2. Ogoshi, T. et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2008, 130, 5022-5023.
3. Xiao, T.; Wang, L., Tetrahedron Lett. 2018, 59, 1172-1182.
4. Zafrani, Y., et al., Chem. Eur. J. 2018, 24, 15750-15755.