Recent advances in selective recognition of fluoride with macrocyclic receptors

Fluoride, as the smallest anion except hydride (H-), has garnered considerable attention over the past decades due to its specific physiochemical properties and its crucial roles in many biological, chemical, medical and environmental processes. There have been hitherto a number of reviews published, to our knowledge, most of which focus on instrumental analytical methods, nanomaterial probes, bio-material sensors, and organic small molecular chemosensors for F- detection. Macrocycles including cages have blossomed over the past half century and found most appealing to the discovery of efficient, sensitive and selective approaches for fluoride detection. This review summarizes recent advances in the development of macrocyclic receptors, including calix[4]pyrrole-based receptors, calixarene-based receptors, pillararene-based receptors, and cage-based receptors, for selective recognition of fluoride since 2013. Particularly, the focus of this review will be on design principles, structural features, working mechanism (complexation or deprotonation), and recognition efficacy and selectivity of macrocyclic receptors, as well as their recognition-based applications in fluoride sensing, extraction, transmembrane fluoride transport, nanodevice and logic gate construction. It is expected that this review article could provide a guide for rational design and synthesis of, inter alia, new macrocyclic receptors for selective fluoride recognition, thereby advancing fluoride recognition-based applications in new and practical directions. (c) 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. <comment>Superscript/Subscript Available</comment