The development of nanoporous (microporous by IUPAC definition) materials is particularly relevant for various applications such as molecular recognition or gas storage. Conventional nanoporous materials are usually constituted by amorphous or crystalline inorganic networks but in recent years the design of nanoporous materials based on organic components have raised a great interest. Particularly interesting are those based on polymers because of their typical robustness, durability, and low cost associated with easy processing.While the preparation and the characterization of amorphous nanoporous polymeric materials is well-documented in literature, the existence of nanoporous polymeric crystalline phases has been described, so far, only for two commercial polymers: syndiotactic polystyrene (s-PS) and poly(2,6-dimethyl-1,4-phenylene)oxide (PPO).The nanoporous crystalline phases which are obtained from co-crystalline host-guest phases by suitable guest extraction procedures (e.g., carbon dioxide in supercritical conditions) can absorb volatile organic molecules, even if present in traces in air or water.The first part of this contribution will focus on the preparation and characterization of different types of s-PS and PPO materials (films, microfibers, aerogels) including nanoporous crystalline phases and potential applications in air/water purification, active packaging of fruit and vegetable and molecular sensorics will be discussed.Nanoporous crystalline phases can be also used as a framework to obtain polymer co-crystalline phases with active molecules (nonlinear active, fluorescent, photoreactive, chiral, ...). The self-assembling of active molecules into co-crystals reduces guest diffusivity and self-aggregation (without recurring to chemical reactions) and also allows to control their location and macroscopic orientation through the orientation of the host crystalline phase. This constitutes an innovative approach in the area of functional polymeric materials that are generally characterized by a disordered distribution of active groups into amorphous phases. Thus, in the second part of this contribution, studies on co-crystalline s-PS films with ferroelectric, magnetic, and fluorescent properties will be presented.

Nanoporous crystalline polymer materials

248th National Meeting (2014)

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