Recovery and Isolation of Higher Fullerenes and Metallofullerenes Via Selective Chemical Release from Waste Materials

Moving beyond the conventional HPLC approach to isolating fullerenes and endohedrals, scientists have begun using chemical methods to selectively bind either contaminant or desired species. Recently, we introduced aminopropanol as a reagent that would selectively react with spheroidal fullerenes to form water soluble derivatives, with unreacted tubular fullerenes (Fullertubes) remaining in the organic phase. In this presentation, we address the fate of the functionalized spheroidal fullerenes. These spent reaction mixtures are typically discarded as waste material. The aim of my project is to chemically release and recover pristine fullerenes and metallofullerenes. In this presentation, I will discuss our recent progress into the recovery and isolation of new higher fullerene and endohedral species. This selective release approach permits the isolation of new carbon structures.