Organic Nanotubes Prepared from Chiral Molecules by the Template Method

Organic nanotubes from two kinds of chiral molecules, R-di-2-naphthylprolinol (DNP) with an asymmetric carbon atom and R-(+)-1,1'-bi-2-naphthol dimethyl ether (BNDE) with the conformational asymmetry, were prepared by the immersing technique using porous alumina membranes as the template. It was found that the nanotubes from DNP with an asymmetric carbon atom presented the same chirality as the solution with slight red shift of the CD signals upon the formation of the nanotubes, while no well-defined chirality could be identified for the nanotubes from BNDE with the conformational asymmetry.