Twelvefold Functionalization of an Icosahedral Surface by Total Esterification of [B12(OH)12]2−: 12(12)-Closomers

Abstract

Esterified B12 icosahedra with totally organoderivatized surfaces are obtained from the reaction of [closo-B12(OH)12]2− with acetic anhydride or benzoyl chloride. The resulting “closomers”, in which each cluster vertex is substituted with an organic ester moiety, can provide camouflaged modules of variable size, shape, charge, hydrophobicity, etc. and represent the first examples of this structural motif known in chemistry. The figure displays, in a space-filling representation, the result of an X-ray analysis performed with the dodecabenzoate ester derivative.