Issue 38, 2011

Perfluoroalkyl bile esters: a new class of efficient gelators of organic and aqueous–organic media

Abstract

A new class of fluorinated gelators derived from bile acids is reported. Perfluoroalkyl chains were attached to the bile acids through two different ester linkages and were synthesized following simple transformations. The gelation property of these derivatives is a function of the bile acid moiety, the spacer and the fluoroalkyl chain length. By varying these parameters, gels were obtained in aromatic hydrocarbons, DMSO and DMSO/DMF–H2O mixtures of different proportions. Several derivatives of deoxycholic and lithocholic acids were found to be efficient organogelators, while the reported bile-acid based organogelators are mostly derived from the cholic acid moiety. The efficient gelators among these compounds formed gels well below 1.0% (w/v) and hence they can be termed as supergelators. The mechanical properties of these gels could be modulated by changing either the bile acid moiety or by varying the length of the fluoroalkyl segment. The presence of CO2-philic perfluoroalkyl groups is also expected to enhance their solubility in supercritical CO2 and hence these compounds are promising candidates for making aerogels.

Graphical abstract: Perfluoroalkyl bile esters: a new class of efficient gelators of organic and aqueous–organic media

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
01 May 2011
Accepted
19 Jul 2011
First published
15 Aug 2011

J. Mater. Chem., 2011,21, 14693-14705

Perfluoroalkyl bile esters: a new class of efficient gelators of organic and aqueous–organic media

S. Banerjee, V. M. Vidya, A. J. Savyasachi and U. Maitra, J. Mater. Chem., 2011, 21, 14693 DOI: 10.1039/C1JM11912E

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