Reductive Retrofunctionalization of Single‐Walled Carbon Nanotubes

Abstract

As if nothing had happened: A detailed mechanistic investigation of the nucleophilic addition of organolithium reagents onto single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) revealed that the initial functionalization step is part of an equilibrium. Consequently, the functionalization of the sidewalls of SWCNTs is reversible, and the introduced substituents can be detached easily by reduction.