Cyclo(18)carbon

Cyclo[18]carbon
Names
Preferred IUPAC name
Cyclooctadeca-1,3,5,7,9,11,13,15,17-nonayne
Identifiers
3D model (JSmol)
ChemSpider
  • InChI=1S/C18/c1-2-4-6-8-10-12-14-16-18-17-15-13-11-9-7-5-3-1
    Key: GPWDPLKISXZVIE-UHFFFAOYSA-N
  • C1#CC#CC#CC#CC#CC#CC#CC#CC#C1
Properties
C18
Molar mass 216.198 g·mol−1
Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C [77 °F], 100 kPa).
Infobox references

Cyclooctadeca-1,3,5,7,9,11,13,15,17-nonayne or cyclo[18]carbon is an allotrope of carbon with molecular formula C
18
. The molecule is a ring of eighteen carbon atoms, connected by alternating triple and single bonds; thus, it is a polyyne and a cyclocarbon.

Cyclo[18]carbon is the smallest cyclo[n]carbon predicted to be relatively stable, with a computed strain energy of 72 kilocalories per mole.

It is, however, difficult to synthesize. It was first observed transiently in 1987 from a high-temperature retro-Diels-Alder reaction, but was unstable under those conditions, and could not be isolated.

A collaboration claimed to synthesize it in solid state in 2019 by electrochemical decarbonylation:

The observed geometry corresponds to alternating triple bonds and single bonds, rather than a cumulene-type structure of consecutive double bonds.

Cyclo[18] carbon is predicted to be a mild oxidant and a semiconductor.