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Neutron scattering reveals water confined in a watertight bilayer vesicle

Water molecules confined in a nanocavity possess distinctly different characteristics from those in bulk, yet the preparation of such nanocavities is still a major experimental challenge. We report here a self-assembled vesicle of an anionic perfluoroalkylated [60]fullerene, unique for its outstandi...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Abuillan, Wasim (Author) , Becker, Alexandra S. (Author) , Tanaka, Motomu (Author)
Format: Article (Journal)
Language:English
Published: August 17, 2018
In: Journal of the American Chemical Society
Year: 2018, Volume: 140, Issue: 36, Pages: 11261-11266
ISSN:1520-5126
DOI:10.1021/jacs.8b04066
Online Access:Verlag, Volltext: https://doi.org/10.1021/jacs.8b04066
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Author Notes:Wasim Abuillan, Alexandra S. Becker, Bruno Demé, Tatsuya Homma, Hiroyuki Isobe, Koji Harano, Eiichi Nakamura, and Motomu Tanaka
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Summary:Water molecules confined in a nanocavity possess distinctly different characteristics from those in bulk, yet the preparation of such nanocavities is still a major experimental challenge. We report here a self-assembled vesicle of an anionic perfluoroalkylated [60]fullerene, unique for its outstanding stability and water tightness, containing water not bound to the membranes. Small-angle neutron scattering revealed that a vesicle of 14 nm outer radius contains a 2 nm thick fullerene bilayer, inside of which is a 3 nm thick membrane-bound water and unbound water in the 4 nm innermost cavity. The vesicle shows astonishingly low water permeability that is 6 to 9 orders of magnitude smaller than that of a lipid vesicle. As a result, a single vesicle isolated on a substrate can retain the interior water in air or even under high vacuum, indicating that the vesicle cavity provides a new tool for physicochemical studies of confined water as well as ions and molecules dissolved in it.
Item Description:Gesehen am 04.04.2019
Physical Description:Online Resource
ISSN:1520-5126
DOI:10.1021/jacs.8b04066

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