Highly microporous free-radically generated polymeric materials using a novel contorted monomer

- Synthesis of a novel, free radically polymerizable, contorted monomer.
- Homopolymeric networks from contorted monomer have high micropore content.
- Contorted monomer content controls degree of microporosity in copolymeric networks.

A novel, free-radically polymerizable, contorted monomer was synthesized in two steps from bisphenol A. In a simple precipitation polymerization process making use of solvent as a porogen, homopolymerization of this contorted monomer (SBI-DV) resulted in polymeric networks with surface areas as high as 850 m2/g and with SAmicro/SABET values as high as 0.65. Comparative DVB based polymeric networks produced under similar conditions had equally as high SABET but SAmicro/SABET values of 0.35. In addition, copolymeric networks were produced using varying molar monomer ratios of SBI-DV/DVB. The degree of microporosity in the resulting copolymeric networks correlated with the amount of SBI-DV used in their formation.

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