Basic-Functionalized Ionic Porous Organic Polymers: Triple Roles in One for Highly Efficient and Recyclable...

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Catalysis
• Green Chemistry

Background:

• Carbon dioxide (CO2) conversion is crucial for carbon neutrality goals.
• α-methylene cyclic carbonate is a key intermediate in organic synthesis.
• Developing efficient catalysts for CO2 utilization is an ongoing challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

• To synthesize and characterize basic-functionalized ionic porous organic polymers (IPOPs).
• To evaluate the catalytic performance of IPOPs for the synthesis of α-methylene cyclic carbonate from CO2.
• To investigate the role of functionalized anions in the catalytic process.

Main Methods:

• Post-modification synthesis of IPOPs with varying basic-functionalized anions.
• Characterization of IPOPs for BET surface area and ion site content.
• Catalytic testing of IPOPs for carboxylative cyclization of CO2 with silver salts under mild conditions.

Main Results:

• Synthesized IPOPs with tailored BET surface areas and high ion site content.
• Demonstrated excellent catalytic performance for CO2 cyclization at 30°C and 1 bar.
• Identified triple roles of basic-functionalized anions: CO2 enrichment, substrate activation, and catalyst stabilization/regeneration.
• Achieved 99% yield of α-alkylidene cyclic carbonate with excellent recyclability (5 cycles) using DCX-4-Tet/Ag2O.

Conclusions:

• Basic-functionalized IPOPs are effective catalysts for CO2 conversion to α-methylene cyclic carbonate.
• The developed catalytic system operates efficiently under mild conditions without external organic bases.
• This work presents the first example of multifunctional basic-functionalized IPOPs for highly efficient CO2 cyclization.