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Free keywords:
carbenes
density functional calculations
frustrated Lewis pairs
fullerenes
small-molecule activation
Abstract:
Lewis adducts between N-heterocyclic carbenes and fullerenes have been isolated and their structures confirmed by X-ray crystallography. This work shows that simple fullerenes such as C60 or C70 can act as Lewis acids. This result not only opens new perspectives in fullerene chemistry but might also have strong implications in emerging fields such as the metal-free activation of small molecules.
