o-Carborane
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Molecular Structure
Detailed Description
A?carborane?is a?cluster composed?of?boron,?carbon?and?hydrogen?atoms. Like many of the related?boranes, these clusters are?polyhedra?and are similarly classified as?closo-, nido-, arachno-, hypho-,?etc. based on whether they represent a complete (closo-) polyhedron, or a polyhedron that is missing one (nido-), two (arachno-), or more vertices. Carboranes are a notable example of?heteroboranes.
The?icosahedral?closo-carboranes are particularly stable. These boron-rich clusters exhibit unique?organomimetic?properties with chemical reactivity matching classical organic molecules, yet structurally similar to metal-based inorganic and organometallic species.
Carboranes have been explored as a source of boron in?boron neutron capture therapy. They have also been examined in structural studies in?crystallography.
Carboranes have been used to make solid?superacids. Solid superacid catalysts alleviate the need to dispose of spent acids, thus providing a significant environmental advantage over dissolved acids.
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