Porous ionic polymers: Design, synthesis, and applications

Porous ionic polymers (PiPs) are newly emerging organic porous polymers. In sharp contrast to charge-neutral porous polymers, ionic moieties are either incorporated into the polymer backbone, or are covalently attached to a polymeric framework. Therefore, their physicochemical properties, functional groups, and active sites can be easily modified through screening of building blocks and ionic tectons. Meanwhile, their surface area, pore size, and pore volume can also be tuned by counterions exchange. Intrinsic functionalization further broadens the application range of the PiPs. This review will describe the recent advancements with regard to PiPs, and their development in the area of gas adsorption, catalysis, antibacterial applications and water purification.