Acyl Radical Addition to [60]Fullerene

Significance

Fullerenes are applied broadly in material science. However, it remains a challenge to chemically functionalize fullerenes in a reliable and controlled way. In this paper, the authors report a methodology to acylate [60]fullerene in a relatively clean fashion. While a few acylated fullerenes have been reported, they require multiple steps to synthesize. The methodology reported by the authors provides a one-step pathway to these previously formidable targets.