An efficient artificial molecular pump

Despite the fact that artificial molecular machines are on the rise, there is a long way to go to eventually fill the yawning gap that exists between biological and man-made machines in terms of both their mechanisms of action and efficiencies of operation. Herein, we describe our recent efforts directed towards the development of a second-generation (more efficient) artificial molecular pump – a wholly synthetic compound, which operates to compartmentalise highly charged rings in a high-energy state on an oligomethylene chain. The optimized artificial molecular pump operates rapidly, thanks to well-tuned noncovalent bonding interactions, paving the way to address enthalpically and entropically demanding polymers that would be difficult to obtain with the available repertoire of synthetic methods.