Azobenzene Lyotropic Liquid Crystals as Photoswitchable Materials for Solar Thermal Fuels

该项目将首次研究溶致液晶（LLC）偶氮苯光表面活性剂（AzoPS）作为高能量存储stf的可能性。最近的研究表明，中性偶氮ops形成多种LLC相，可以通过分子结构的策略设计在低浓度（10 wt%）下获得。LLC中间相在紫外线照射下可被破坏，在蓝光（或热）下可重新组装。AzoPS LLCs由于增加了分子间相互作用和高发色团密度，可以为stf提供更高的能量存储密度。关键的焦点将是确定能量存储密度。为了了解这种新材料的设计空间，该项目将通过使用不同的LLC中间相、与常规表面活性剂和溶剂共稀释来调整分子填料。结合结构，光谱和热表征将用于将光开关状态的变化与结构包装和能量存储密度联系起来。利用小角x射线散射（SAXS）和红外光谱技术研究AzoPS LLCs的非均质性、光异构化动力学和能量学，设计具有高能量存储密度的AzoPS LLCs系统。

This project will investigate the opportunity for lyotropic liquid crystal (LLC) assemblies of azobenzene-photosurfactants (AzoPS) as high energy storage STFs for the first time. It has recently been shown that neutral AzoPS form a variety of LLC phases, which can be accessed at low concentrations (10 wt%) through strategic design of the molecular structure. The LLC mesophases could be destroyed upon UV irradiation and re-assembled under blue light (or heat). The AzoPS LLCs could offer enhanced energy storage density for STFs due to the combination of increased intermolecular interactions and a high chromophore density. The key focus will be to determine the energy storage density. To understand this new material design space, the project will tune molecular packing by using: different LLC mesophases, co-dilution with a regular surfactant, and solvent.Combined structural, spectroscopy and thermal characterisation will be used to correlate changes in the photoswitch state, to structural packing and the energy storage density. Attention will be paid to understanding the heterogeneity, kinetics and energetics of photoisomerisation in AzoPS LLCs using small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and infrared spectroscopy to design system with high energy storage density.