A Bis‐Acridinium Macrocycle as Multi‐Responsive Receptor and Selective Phase‐Transfer Agent of Perylene
Johnny Hu, Jas S. Ward, Alain Chaumont, Kari Rissanen, Jean‐Marc Vincent, Valérie Heitz, Henri‐Pierre Jacquot de Rouville
Abstract
A bis-acridinium cyclophane incorporating switchable acridinium moieties linked by a 3,5-dipyridylanisole spacer was studied as a multi-responsive host for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon guests. Complexation of perylene was shown to be the most effective and was characterized in particular by a charge-transfer band as signal output. Effective catch and release of the guest was triggered by both chemical (proton/hydroxide) and redox stimuli. Moreover, the dicationic host was also easily switched between organic and perfluorocarbon phases for applications related to the enrichment of perylene from a mixture of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.