Microporous polymers and membranes thereof are heavily sought after for their unique ability to discriminate between small molecules and ions in applications such as gas capture, water desalination, and energy storage. This discriminating ability has, in the past, emerged primarily from their unique pore architecture, but less so due to the presence of specific functional groups within. This deficiency is due to the paucity of means to functionalize the pores. Here I describe our recent efforts in expanding the types of chemical functionalities that can be placed within the pores of microporous polymers, using polymers of intrinsic microporosity and thermally rearranged polymers as platforms. Our approach allows for tailoring backbone designs in advance or post-polymerization, yielding highly selective membranes whose architectures retain their leading-edge permeability.

Expanding the synthetic toolbox for functionalizing the pores of microporous polymer membranes

256th National Meeting (2018)

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