Versatile Porous Poly(arylene ether)s via Pd-Catalyzed C-O Polycondensation

Area of Science:

• Polymer Chemistry
• Materials Science
• Organic Synthesis

Background:

• Porous organic polymers (POPs) offer tunable properties for diverse applications.
• Poly(arylene ether)s (PAEs) are high-performance thermoplastics with desirable stability and mechanical properties.
• Existing POP synthesis is limited to specific monomer types.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a general synthetic method for porous poly(arylene ether)s (PAEs).
• To expand the range of accessible PAE compositions and architectures.
• To utilize PAEs in environmentally relevant applications.

Main Methods:

• Palladium-catalyzed C-O polycondensation reactions.
• Synthesis of PAEs using monomers with unactivated aryl chlorides and bromides.
• Characterization of resulting porous PAEs for molecular weight, thermal stability, and porosity.

Main Results:

• A new general method for synthesizing PAEs via Pd-catalyzed C-O polycondensation was established.
• A wide range of new PAE compositions and architectures were synthesized.
• The synthesized porous PAEs exhibit high molecular weight, good thermal stability, and porosity.
• The materials are solution processable.

Conclusions:

• The developed method broadens the scope of PAE synthesis, enabling the creation of novel porous materials.
• These porous PAEs are suitable for environmentally relevant applications like heavy-metal-ion sensing and capture.
• This work facilitates the development of durable and functional porous polymers.