Preparation and adsorption properties of a facile solid cucurbit[8]uril-based porous supramolecular assembly

Cucurbit[8]uril (Q[8]) was used as the building block for the facile preparation of Q[8]-based supramolecular assemblies in aqueous HCl solutions (A). The Q[8]-based supramolecular assembly was constructed of Q[8] molecules held together through outer surface interactions of cucurbit[n]urils, and hydrogen bonding between latticed water molecules and portal carbonyl oxygens of Q[8]. The porous structure resulted in different adsorption properties for different fluorophore guests (FGs), including dyes and fused-ring compounds, and fluorescence enhancement or colour changes resulted in luminescent materials (FG@As). Moreover, some of the FG@A systems could selectively respond to certain volatile organic compounds, for which they can be used as solid sensors.