Abstract
Indene–C60 monoadduct (ICMA) and phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM) undergo retro-reactions in the presence of FeCl3 at 25°C for 1 hour, affording their parent fullerene C60. Substrate selectivity was found; the retro-reaction for methanofullerene (Bingel-reaction product) and pyrrolidinofullerene (Prato-reaction product) did not proceed at all to afford 100% recovery. The use of inexpensive FeCl3, mild reaction conditions, simple operations and substrate selectivity is advantageous and suggests several potential applications.