Synthesis of C60-CM-Cn and its effect on the stabilization of nitrocellulose†

Abstract

The fullerene derivative C₆₀-CM-C_n was synthesized via a two-step reaction using fullerene (C₆₀), curcumin (C₂₁H₁₈O₅), and bromoalkanes (RBr) as raw materials. The structure of C₆₀-CM-C_n was characterized by nuclear magnetic resonance (¹H and ¹³C NMR) and high-resolution mass spectrometry (HR MS). Thermal analysis, including differential thermal analysis (DTA), vacuum stability tests (VST), thermogravimetric analysis (TG), and methyl violet experiments, along with electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy, was used to investigate the interaction mechanism between C₆₀-CM-C_n and nitrocellulose (NC). The results demonstrated that there is good compatibility between C₆₀-CM-C_n and NC, C₆₀-CM-C_n extended the color change time of methyl violet paper by 28–47 min, reduced the gas released during the thermal decomposition of NC by 0.7–1.69 mL g⁻¹, and decreased the heat loss rate of NC by 9.8–15.6%. Additionally, at a minimum concentration of 0.19 g L⁻¹, C₆₀-CM-C_n achieved a 50% removal rate of nitrogen oxides (NO_x). These findings indicate that C₆₀-CM-C_n serves as an effective antioxidant for the removal of nitrogen oxides from NC fibers, outperforming traditional stabilizers such as diphenylamine (DPA) and C2 in improving NC stability.