*Please refer to dissertation for diagrams. / In Chapter 2, the development of organocatalysis is briefly summarized. Also the development of asymmetric Morita-Baylis-Hillman (MBH) reaction and asymmetric Diels-Alder (DA) reaction and their strategies are presented. Some representative examples are delineated with in-depth discussion. / In Chapter 3, the idea of the design of organocatalysts from tetraphenylenes is illustrated. The syntheses of enantiopure (S,S)- and ( R,R)-1,8,9,16-tetrahydroxytetraphenylene (1) and racemic 1,4,5,8,9,16-hexahydroxytetraphenylene (2) are described. The functionalization of compounds 1 and 2 and the attempt to synthesize amino acid from compound 1 are discussed. The syntheses of racemic and chiral amine derivatives from compound 1 and their applications on the catalysis of MBH reaction and asymmetric DA reaction are presented and discussed. / In Chapter 4, the application of marcocyclic compounds on enantiomeric recognition is briefly reviewed. The strategies and syntheses of the two enantiomeric tetrameric form of 1,8,9,16-tetraalkoxytetraphenylene, which is a potential chiral recognition reagent, are discussed. / In Chapter 5, the background information of the chemistry of liquid crystals is briefly reviewed, and the syntheses of different alkoxy-derivatives from compound 1 are presented. Among these derivatives, three of them were found to have liquid crystal properties. The details on the characterization of their liquid crystal properties are discussed. / In Chapter 6, a short summary and conclusion of the results in the previous chapters are given. / In Chapter 7, experimental details are summarized.* / Tetraphenylenes are structurally exceptional molecules featuring a rigid conformation. As such, substituents of these compounds would demonstrate highly directional disposition. As a result, these molecules, in their optically pure forms, are potential candidates as organocatalysts in asymmetric synthesis. In this thesis, some essential background information and previous works about the development of the tetraphenylenes are first presented in Chapter 1. / The second part is about the potential applications of tetraalkoxytetraphenylene derivatives. / The thesis is divided into two parts. The first part is about the applications of amino-substituted tetraphenylene derivatives as organocatalysts. / pt. 1. Amino-substituted tetraphenylene derivatives as organocatalysts -- pt. 2. Potential applications of tetraalkoxytetraphenylenes. / Hau, Chun Kit. / Adviser: H. N. C. Wong. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 72-04, Section: B, page: . / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2010. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 260-282). / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Electronic reproduction. Ann Arbor, MI : ProQuest Information and Learning Company, [200-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstract also in Chinese.