Abstract
The carbon-based materials (CbMs) refer to a class of substances in which the carbon atoms can assume different hybridization states (sp1, sp2, sp3) leading to different allotropic structures -. In these substances, the carbon atoms can form robust covalent bonds with other carbon atoms or with a vast class of metallic and non-metallic elements, giving rise to an enormous number of compounds from small molecules to long chains to solids. This is one of the reasons why the carbon chemistry is at the basis of the organic chemistry and the biochemistry from which life on earth was born. In this context, the surface chemistry assumes a substantial role dictating the physical and chemical properties of the carbon-based materials. Different functionalities are obtained by bonding carbon atoms with heteroatoms (mainly oxygen, nitrogen, sulfur) determining a certain reactivity of the compound which otherwise is rather weak. This holds for classic materials such as the diamond, the graphite, the carbon black and the porous carbon but functionalization is widely applied also to the carbon nanostructures which came at play mainly in the last two decades. As a matter of fact, nowadays, in addition to fabrication of nano and porous structures, the functionalization of CbMs is at the basis of a number of applications as catalysis, energy conversion, sensing, biomedicine, adsorption etc. This work is dedicated to the modification of the surface chemistry reviewing the different approaches also considering the different macro and nano allotropic forms of carbon.
Highlights
Diamond and graphite are the most known forms of carbon since antiquity it has long been recognized that carbon is present in nature in different types of compounds such as the various types of amorphous carbon, in organic molecules and biomolecules
This holds for classic materials such as the diamond, the graphite, the carbon black and the porous carbon but functionalization is widely applied to the carbon nanostructures which came at play mainly in the last two decades
Transmission electron microscope (TEM) image of an single walled carbon nanotubes (SWNT) conjugated with proteins; a SWNT coated by a single-stranded DNA via π–π stacking; a SWNT functionalized with PEGylated phospholipids
Summary
Diamond and graphite are the most known forms of carbon since antiquity it has long been recognized that carbon is present in nature in different types of compounds such as the various types of amorphous carbon, in organic molecules and biomolecules. Differently from the organization in a perfect hexagon structure as in graphite sheets, presence of pentagons causes bond resonance to be absent This makes fullerenes be efficient charge acceptors, a property which is of paramount importance in reactions with radicals and in surface functionalization [22]. The porous carbon is characterized by a high specific surface area enhancing the interaction with the external medium It possesses a lower conductivity with respect to glassy carbon, the high porosity and the presence of active sites makes it a good material to fabricate electrodes for applications in electrochemistry [51,52,53] and bioelectrodes for sensing and stimulation [54,55]. We will focus on the surface chemistry and the role of various treatments that can be utilized for specific applications
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