Agile Construction of Bioinspired Porous Ionic Hyper-Crosslinked Polymers for Enhanced CO₂ Capture and Conversion

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Polymer Chemistry
• Catalysis

Background:

• Hydrogen bonding in DNA stabilizes the double helix.
• Alkaloids and biphenyl dichloride (BP) are key components.

Purpose of the Study:

• To synthesize novel ionic hyper-cross-linked polymers (iHCPs) using a bioinspired approach.
• To evaluate their performance in CO2 capture and conversion.

Main Methods:

• One-pot synthesis via simultaneous quaternization and Friedel-Crafts alkylation.
• Characterization of porous structures and surface areas (up to 1480 m²·g⁻¹).
• In situ FTIR spectroscopy and density functional theory (DFT) calculations.

Main Results:

• Optimized iHCPs (AN-BP(1:3)) showed high CO2 adsorption (154.4 mg·g⁻¹ at 273 K, 1 bar).
• iHCPs acted as recyclable catalysts for CO2 and epoxide conversion into cyclic carbonates.
• Hydrogen bonding and basic sites enhanced CO2 capture and catalytic activity.

Conclusions:

• Established a bioinspired design for ionic polymers integrating pore engineering and hydrogen-bond catalysis.
• Advanced CO2 capture and conversion technologies through novel material development.