Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 28, 2026

Synthesis of Soft Polysiloxane-urea Elastomers for Intraocular Lens Application
Published on: March 8, 2019
Extraction mechanism of monovalent ion-pairs by polyurethane foams
1Department of Chemistry, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada R3T 2N2.
Abstract:
The extractability sequence of K(+) approximately Rb(+) > Cs(+) > Na(+) > Li(+) for the extraction with polyether foam suggests that the cation chelation mechanism might be operative. However, the same order was obtained for the extraction with 100% polypropylene oxide polyether foam which does not normally adopt a helical structure to form oxygen-rich cavities as easily or as effectively as polyethylene oxide to accommodate alkali metal ions. This result indicates that a hole-size/cation-diameter relationship may not be required for the high extraction of K(+). The extraction of alkali metal DPAs and hydroxides from methanol demonstrates the importance of the solvent effect. It indicates that the water-structure enforced ion-pairing (WSEIP) is the driving force for extraction of the ion-pairs. The extraction mechanism for ionic species can be described as an ion-pair extraction process. The overall effect of ion-pair formation in water and interaction of the extracted ions with foam appears to determine the extractability of the ions of the extractable ion-pair.
Related Concept Videos
Ion Exchange
Extraction: Advanced Methods
Pore Transport and Ion-Pair Transport
Pore transport, also known as convective transport, is a process where small molecules like urea, water, and sugars rapidly cross cell membranes as though there were channels or pores in the membrane. Although direct microscopic evidence is limited but the concept of pores or channels is widely accepted based on physiological evidence. Despite the lack of direct microscopic...
Ionic Association
Intermolecular Forces
Cationic Chain-Growth Polymerization: Mechanism

