title: Measurement of radon and xenon binding to a cryptophane molecular host.
abstract: Xenon and radon have many similar properties, a difference being that all 35 isotopes of radon ((195)Rn-(229)Rn) are radioactive. Radon is a pervasive indoor air pollutant believed to cause significant incidence of lung cancer in many geographic regions, yet radon affinity for a discrete molecular species has never been determined. By comparison, the chemistry of xenon has been widely studied and applied in science and technology. Here, both noble gases were found to bind with exceptional affinity to tris-(triazole ethylamine) cryptophane, a previously unsynthesized water-soluble organic host molecule. The cryptophane-xenon association constant, K(a)=42,000 ± 2,000 M(-1) at 293 K, was determined by isothermal titration calorimetry. This value represents the highest measured xenon affinity for a host molecule. The partitioning of radon between air and aqueous cryptophane solutions of varying concentration was determined radiometrically to give the cryptophane-radon association constant K(a)=49,000 ± 12,000 M(-1) at 293 K.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Pennsylvania, 231 South 34th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
authors.forename: David R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Jacobson
authors.forename: Najat S
authors.initials: NS
authors.lastname: Khan
authors.forename: Ronald
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Collé
authors.forename: Ryan
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Fitzgerald
authors.forename: Lizbeth
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Laureano-Pérez
authors.forename: Yubin
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Bai
authors.forename: Ivan J
authors.initials: IJ
authors.lastname: Dmochowski
mesh_terms: D000388:Air; D000396:Air Pollutants, Radioactive / Q000032:analysis*; D016902:Air Pollution, Indoor; D001665:Binding Sites; D018360:Crystallography, X-Ray; D008956:Models, Chemical; D011083:Polycyclic Compounds / Q000737:chemistry*; D011874:Radiometry; D011886:Radon / Q000032:analysis*; D012996:Solutions; D014867:Water; D014978:Xenon / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D000396:Air Pollutants, Radioactive; D011083:Polycyclic Compounds; D012996:Solutions; C523242:cryptophane; D014867:Water; D014978:Xenon; D011886:Radon