Synthesis of Luminescent Covalent-Organic Polymers for Detecting Nitroaromatic Explosives and Small Organic Molecules

Emerging trends in the development and applications of triazine-based covalent organic polymers: a comprehensive review

Owing to unique structural features, triazine-based covalent organic polymers (COPs) have attracted significant attention and emerged as novel catalysts or support materials for an array of applications. Typically formed by reacting triazine-based monomers or the in situ creation of triazine rings from nitrile monomers, these COPs possess 2D/3D meso/microporous structures held together via strong covalent linkages. The quest for efficient, stable and recyclable catalytic systems globally necessitates the need for a well-structured and comprehensive review summarizing the synthetic methodologies and applications of triazine-based COPs. This review explores the various synthetic routes and applications of these COPs in photocatalysis, heterogeneous catalysis, electrocatalysis, adsorption and sensing. By exploring the latest advancements and future directions, this review offers valuable insights into the synthesis and applications of triazine-based COPs.

Efficient integration of covalent triazine frameworks (CTFs) for augmented photocatalytic efficacy: A review of synthesis, strategies, and applications

Heterogeneous photocatalysis emerges as an exceptionally appealing technological avenue for the direct capture, conversion, and storage of renewable solar energy, facilitating the generation of sustainable and ecologically benign solar fuels and a spectrum of other pertinent applications. Heterogeneous nanocomposites, incorporating Covalent Triazine Frameworks (CTFs), exhibit a wide-ranging spectrum of light absorption, well-suited electronic band structures, rapid charge carrier mobility, ample resource availability, commendable chemical robustness, and straightforward synthetic routes. These attributes collectively position them as highly promising photocatalysts with applicability in diverse fields, including but not limited to the production of photocatalytic solar fuels and the decomposition of environmental contaminants. As the field of photocatalysis through the hybridization of CTFs undergoes rapid expansion, there is a pressing and substantive need for a systematic retrospective analysis and forward-looking evaluation to elucidate pathways for enhancing performance. This comprehensive review commences by directing attention to diverse synthetic methodologies for the creation of composite materials. And then it delves into a thorough exploration of strategies geared towards augmenting performance, encompassing the introduction of electron donor-acceptor (D-A) units, heteroatom doping, defect Engineering, architecture of Heterojunction and optimization of morphology. Following this, it systematically elucidates applications primarily centered around the efficient generation of photocatalytic hydrogen, reduction of carbon dioxide through photocatalysis, and the degradation of organic pollutants. Ultimately, the discourse turns towards unresolved challenges and the prospects for further advancement, offering valuable guidance for the potent harnessing of CTFs in high-efficiency photocatalytic processes.

Powders to Thin Films: Advances in Conjugated Microporous Polymer Chemical Sensors

Chemical sensing of harmful species released either from natural or anthropogenic activities is critical to ensuring human safety and health. Over the last decade, conjugated microporous polymers (CMPs) have been proven to be potential sensor materials with the possibility of realizing sensing devices for practical applications. CMPs found to be unique among other porous materials such as metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) and covalent organic frameworks (COFs) due to their high chemical/thermal stability, high surface area, microporosity, efficient host-guest interactions with the analyte, efficient exciton migration along the π-conjugated chains, and tailorable structure to target specific analytes. Several CMP-based optical, electrochemical, colorimetric, and ratiometric sensors with excellent selectivity and sensing performance were reported. This review comprehensively discusses the advances in CMP chemical sensors (powders and thin films) in the detection of nitroaromatic explosives, chemical warfare agents, anions, metal ions, biomolecules, iodine, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs), with simultaneous delineation of design strategy principles guiding the selectivity and sensitivity of CMP. Preceding this, various photophysical mechanisms responsible for chemical sensing are discussed in detail for convenience. Finally, future challenges to be addressed in the field of CMP chemical sensors are discussed.

Preparation of COPs Mixed Matrix Membrane for Sensitive Determination of Six Sulfonamides in Human Urine

In this study, TpDMB-COPs, a specific class of covalent organic polymers (COPs), was synthesized using Schiff-base chemistry and incorporated into a polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) polymer for the first time to prepare COPs mixed matrix membranes (TpDMB-COPs-MMM). A membrane solid-phase extraction (ME) method based on the TpDMB-COPs-MMM was developed to extract trace levels of six sulfonamides from human urine identified by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The key factors affecting the extraction efficiency were investigated. Under the optimum conditions, the proposed method demonstrated an excellent linear relationship in the range of 3.5-25 ng/mL (r2 ≥ 0.9991), with the low limits of detection (LOD) between 1.25 ng/mL and 2.50 ng/mL and the limit of quantification (LOQ) between 3.50 ng/mL and 7.00 ng/mL. Intra-day and inter-day accuracies were below 5.0%. The method's accuracy was assessed by recovery experiments using human urine spiked at three levels (7-14 ng/mL, 10-15 ng/mL, and 16-20 ng/mL). The recoveries ranged from 87.4 to 112.2% with relative standard deviations (RSD) ≤ 8.7%, confirming the applicability of the proposed method. The developed ME method based on TpDMB-COPs-MMM offered advantages, including simple operation, superior extraction affinity, excellent recycling performance, and easy removal and separation from the solution. The prepared TpDMB-COPs-MMM was demonstrated to be a promising adsorbent for ME in the pre-concentration of trace organic compounds from complex matrices, expanding the application of COPs and providing references for other porous materials in sample pre-treatment.

The syntheses of fluorescein-based conjugated microporous polymers by direct arylation polymerization and fluorescence sensing Fe3+ in aqueous solutions

Determination of ferri ions in environment and human bodies is very important for environmental protection and disease diagnosis. Recently, conjugated microporous polymers (CMPs) used for fluorescence sensing metal ions have attracted much attention, but this technique is done in organic solvents. In this study, the two new fluorescein-based CMPs named FLEDOT and FLBTh were synthesized by "greener method", direct arylation polymerization, with tetraiodofluorescein sodium salt (TIFS) and 3,4-ethylenedioxy thiophene or 2,2'-bithiophene. Pleasely, the prepared fluorescein-based CMPs can fluorescently sense for Fe3+ in water with high sensitivity and selectivity. The quenching constants (KSV) of FLEDOT and FLBTh are 1.51 × 104 and 1.09 × 104 L mol-1, and the limits of detection (LODs) as low as 1.99 × 10-10 and 2.75 × 10-10 mol L-1, which are comparable to the sensitivity found in organic solvents' dispersions such as N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF)' dispersions. UV-Vis absorption spectra show that the fluorescence quenching mechanisms of Fe3+ are absorption competition quenching process and energy transfer process.

Porous organic polymers (POPs) for environmental remediation

Modern global industrialization along with the ever-increasing growth of the population has resulted in continuous enhancement in the discharge and accumulation of various toxic and hazardous chemicals in the environment. These harmful pollutants, including toxic gases, inorganic heavy metal ions, anthropogenic waste, persistent organic pollutants, toxic dyes, pharmaceuticals, volatile organic compounds, etc., are destroying the ecological balance of the environment. Therefore, systematic monitoring and effective remediation of these toxic pollutants either by adsorptive removal or by catalytic degradation are of great significance. From this viewpoint, porous organic polymers (POPs), being two- or three-dimensional polymeric materials, constructed from small organic molecules connected with rigid covalent bonds have come forth as a promising platform toward various leading applications, especially for efficient environmental remediation. Their unique chemical and structural features including high stability, tunable pore functionalization, and large surface area have boosted the transformation of POPs into various macro-physical forms such as thick and thin-film membranes, which led to a new direction in advanced level pollutant removal, separation and catalytic degradation. In this review, our focus is to highlight the recent progress and achievements in the strategic design, synthesis, architectural-engineering and applications of POPs and their composite materials toward environmental remediation. Several strategies to improve the adsorption efficiency and catalytic degradation performance along with the in-depth interaction mechanism of POP-based materials have been systematically summarized. In addition, evolution of POPs from regular powder form application to rapid and more efficient size and chemo-selective, "real-time" applicable membrane-based application has been further highlighted. Finally, we put forward our perspective on the challenges and opportunities of these materials toward real-world implementation and future prospects in next generation remediation technology.

An overview of the synthetic strategies of C3-symmetric polymeric materials containing benzene and triazine cores and their biomedical applications

C3-symmetric star-shaped materials are an emerging category of porous organic polymers with distinctive properties such as permanent porosity, good thermal and chemical stability, high surface area, and appropriate functionalization that promote outstanding potential in various applications. This review is mostly about constructing benzene or s-triazine rings as the center of C3-symmetric molecules and using side-arm reactions to add functions to these molecules. Over and above this, the performance of various polymerization processes has been additionally investigated in detail, including the trimerization of alkynes or aromatic nitriles, polycondensation of monomers with specific functional groups, and cross-coupling building blocks with benzene or triazine cores. Finally, the most recent progress in biomedical applications for C3-symmetric materials based on benzene or s-triazine have been summarized.

Covalent Triazine Frameworks (CTFs): Synthesis, Crystallization, and Photocatalytic Water Splitting

Covalent Triazine Frameworks (CTFs) have received great attention from academia owing to their unique structure characteristics such as nitrogen-rich structure, chemical stability, fully conjugated skeleton and high surface area; all these unique properties make CTFs attractive for widespread applications, especially for photocatalytic applications. In this review, we aim to provide recent advances in the CTFs preparation, and mainly focus on their photocatalytic applications. This review provides a comprehensive and systematic overview of the CTFs' synthetic methods, crystallinity lifting strategies, and their applications for photocatalytic water splitting. Firstly, a brief background including the photocatalytic water splitting and crystallinity are provided. Then, synthetic methods related to CTFs and the strategies for enhancing the crystallinity are summarized and compared. After that, the general photocatalytic mechanism and the strategies to improve the photocatalytic performance of CTFs are discussed. Finally, the perspectives and challenges of fabricating high crystalline CTFs and designing CTFs with excellent photocatalytic performance are discussed, inspiring the development of CTF materials in photocatalytic applications.

Advances in the Synthesis of Covalent Triazine Frameworks

Covalent triazine frameworks (CTFs) are a class of organic polymer materials constructed by aromatic 1,3,5-triazine rings with planar π-conjugation properties. CTFs are highly stable and porous with N atoms in the frameworks, possessing semiconductive properties; thus they are widely used in gas adsorption and separation as well as catalysis. The properties of CTFs strongly depend on the type of monomers and the synthesis process. Synthesis methods including ionothermal polymerization, amino-aldehyde synthesis, trifluoromethanesulfonic acid catalyzed synthesis, and aldehyde-amidine condensation have been intensively studied in recent years. In this review, we discuss the recent advances and future developments of CTFs synthesis.

Fully Flexible Covalent Organic Frameworks for Fluorescence Sensing 2,4,6-Trinitrophenol and p-Nitrophenol

Nitrophenols are important nitroaromatic compounds, both important environmental pollutants and dangerous explosives, posing a devastating danger and pollution threat to humans. It is vital to detect efficiently trace nitrophenols in the environment. In this contribution, a series of fully flexible cyclotriphosphazene-based COFs (FFCP COFs: HDADE, HBAPB, and HBPDA), prepared with both a flexible knot and flexible linkers of different lengths, were used for sensing 2,4,6-trinitrophenol (TNP) and p-nitrophenol (p-NP) in real time with excellent sensitivity and selectivity. The quenching constants of HDADE by TNP, HBAPB, and HBPDA by p-NP are 6.29 × 10⁴, 2.17 × 10⁵, and 2.48 × 10⁵ L·mol^-1, respectively. The LODs of TNP and p-NP are 1.19 × 10^-11, 6.91 × 10^-12, and 6.05 × 10^-12 mol·L^-1. Their sensitivities increase with the linker length, which is better than the corresponding COFs composed of rigid linkers. There is only a photoinduced electron transfer mechanism in the fluorescence quenching of HBPDA by p-NP. Meanwhile, the mechanisms of photoinduced charge transfer and resonance energy transfer exist in the fluorescence quenching of HDADE by TNP and the fluorescence quenching of HBAPB by p-NP.

Covalent Organic Frameworks for Chemical and Biological Sensing

Covalent organic frameworks (COFs) are a class of crystalline porous organic polymers with polygonal porosity and highly ordered structures. The most prominent feature of the COFs is their excellent crystallinity and highly ordered modifiable one-dimensional pores. Since the first report of them in 2005, COFs with various structures were successfully synthesized and their applications in a wide range of fields including gas storage, pollution removal, catalysis, and optoelectronics explored. In the meantime, COFs also exhibited good performance in chemical and biological sensing, because their highly ordered modifiable pores allowed the selective adsorption of the analytes, and the interaction between the analytes and the COFs’ skeletons may lead to a detectable change in the optical or electrical properties of the COFs. In this review, we firstly demonstrate the basic principles of COFs-based chemical and biological sensing, then briefly summarize the applications of COFs in sensing some substances of practical value, including some gases, ions, organic compounds, and biomolecules. Finally, we discuss the trends and the challenges of COFs-based chemical and biological sensing.

Porous organic polymers as a platform for sensing applications

Sensing analysis is significantly important for human health and environmental safety, and has gained increasing concern. As a promising material, porous organic polymers (POPs) have drawn widespread attention due to the availability of plentiful building blocks and their tunable structures, porosity and functions. Moreover, the permanent porous nature could provide a micro-environment to interact with guest molecules, rendering POPs attractive for application in the sensing field. In this review, we give a comprehensive overview of POPs as a platform for sensing applications. POP-based sensors are mainly divided into five categories, including fluorescence turn-on sensors, fluorescence turn-off sensors, ratiometric fluorescent sensors, colorimetric sensors and chemiresistive sensors, and their various sensing applications in detecting explosives, metal ions, anions, small molecules, biological molecules, pH changes, enantiomers, latent fingerprints and thermosensation are summarized. The different structure-based POPs and their corresponding synthetic strategies as well as the related sensing mechanisms mainly including energy transfer, donor-acceptor electron transfer, absorption competition quenching and inner filter effect are also involved in the discussion. Finally, the future outlook and perspective are addressed briefly.

Hydrazone connected stable luminescent covalent-organic polymer for ultrafast detection of nitro-explosives

Developing promising luminescent probes for the selective sensing of nitro-explosives remains a challenging issue. Porous luminescent covalent–organic polymers are one of the excellent sensing probes for trace hazardous materials. Herein, fluorescent monomers 1,1,2,2-tetrakis(4-formyl-(1,1′-biphenyl))ethane (TFBE) and 1,3,5-benzenetricarboxylic acid trihydrazide (BTCH) were selected to build a novel hydrazone connected stable luminescent covalent–organic polymer (H-COP) of high stability by typical Schiff-base reaction. The N₂ sorption study, BET surface area analysis, and TGA profile indicate the porosity and stability of this H-COP material. Such properties of the H-COP material enable a unique sensing platform for nitro-explosives with great sensitivity (Ksv ∼ 10⁶ M) and selectivity up to μM. This polymer material shows attractive selectivity and sensitivity towards phenolic nitro-explosives and other common explosives among earlier reported COP-based sensors.

A novel H-COP was synthesized through Schiff-base condensation reaction, which shows high sensitivity (K_sv ∼ 10⁶ M⁻¹) and selectivity (μM level) towards nitro-explosives.

Two-Dimensional Polymers and Polymerizations

Synthetic chemists have developed robust methods to synthesize discrete molecules, linear and branched polymers, and disordered cross-linked networks. However, two-dimensional polymers (2DPs) prepared from designed monomers have been long missing from these capabilities, both as objects of chemical synthesis and in nature. Recently, new polymerization strategies and characterization methods have enabled the unambiguous realization of covalently linked macromolecular sheets. Here we review 2DPs and 2D polymerization methods. Three predominant 2D polymerization strategies have emerged to date, which produce 2DPs either as monolayers or multilayer assemblies. We discuss the fundamental understanding and scope of each of these approaches, including: the bond-forming reactions used, the synthetic diversity of 2DPs prepared, their multilayer stacking behaviors, nanoscale and mesoscale structures, and macroscale morphologies. Additionally, we describe the analytical tools currently available to characterize 2DPs in their various isolated forms. Finally, we review emergent 2DP properties and the potential applications of planar macromolecules. Throughout, we highlight achievements in 2D polymerization and identify opportunities for continued study.

Construction of dual-functional nitrogen-enriched fluorescent porous organic polymers for detecting m-dinitrobenzene, picric acid and capturing iodine

Two novel nitrogen-enriched porous organic polymers (POPs), HBP and TBP, were constructed via nucleophilic substitution reactions with high nitrogen contents up to 24.91% and 32.92% for sensing to nitroaromatic compounds (NACs) and adsorbing iodine. They were all systematically characterized by solid-state ¹³C NMR, FT-IR, elemental analysis, solid-state UV-Vis, and other material analysis methods. The experimental data proved that both POPs possess high chemical and thermal stability, excellent fluorescence performance, and porous properties with Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) specific surface areas of 32.88 and 68.00 m² g^-1. The two POPs have dual functions of fluorescence sensing and adsorption. On the one hand, due to their excellent conjugated properties and nitrogen-enriched structures, HBP and TBP exhibited incredibly high sensitivity to m-dinitrobenzene (m-DNB) and picric acid (PA) with K_SV values of 2.57 × 10⁵ and 4.93 × 10⁴ L mol^-1 and limits of detection of 1.17 × 10^-11 and 6.08 × 10^-11 mol L^-1, respectively. On the other hand, owing to the plenty of nitrogen affinity sites, they exhibited excellent volatile iodine adsorption with 2.23 and 2.66 g g^-1, respectively.

Porous Covalent Organic Polymers for Efficient Fluorocarbon-Based Adsorption Cooling

Adsorption-based cooling is an energy-efficient renewable-energy technology that can be driven using low-grade industrial waste heat and/or solar heat. Here, we report the first exploration of fluorocarbon adsorption using porous covalent organic polymers (COPs) for this cooling application. High fluorocarbon R134a equilibrium capacities and unique overall linear-shaped isotherms are revealed for the materials, namely COP-2 and COP-3. The key role of mesoporous defects on this unusual adsorption behavior was demonstrated by molecular simulations based on atomistic defect-containing models built for both porous COPs. Analysis of simulated R134a adsorption isotherms for various defect-containing atomistic models of the COPs shows a direct correlation between higher fluorocarbon adsorption capacities and increasing pore volumes induced by defects. Combined with their high porosities, excellent reversibility, fast kinetics, and large operating window, these defect-containing porous COPs are promising for adsorption-based cooling applications.

Carbon supports on preparing iron-nitrogen dual-doped carbon (Fe-N/C) electrocatalysts for microbial fuel cells: mini-review

Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) are devices that treat sewage and generate electricity. Recent researches have demonstrated that the characteristics of carbon precursors can tremendously influence the performance of the MFC cathode. Carbon nanomaterials with good crystallinity as well as high specific surface area (e.x., graphene and carbon nanotube) can not only accelerate charge transport but also afford a good dispersion of catalytic active components, leading to high MFC performance. On these bases, the preparation of highly-active Fe-N/C catalysts using different carbon substrates are mainly discussed in this review. It is pointed out that increasing the surface area and conductivity as well as elevating the density of active sites to reduce the oxygen reduction overpotential is still the emphasis of the current works. At present, although the researchers have made some progress, the output power density is far from meeting the actual application needs.

Recent Advances of Triazine-Based Materials for Adsorbent Based Extraction Techniques

This review mainly focused on the synthesis and properties of triazine-based materials as well as the state-of-the-art development of these materials in adsorption-based extraction techniques in the past 5 years, such as solid-phase extraction, magnetic solid-phase extraction, solid-phase microextraction and stir bar sorptive extraction, and the detection of various pollutants, including metal ions, drugs, estrogens, nitroaromatics, pesticides, phenols, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and parabens. In the triazine-functionalized composites, triazine-based polymers and covalent triazine frameworks have been developed as the adsorbents with potential for environmental pollutants, mainly relying on the large surface area and the affinity of triazinyl groups with the targets. Triazine-based adsorbents have satisfactory sensitivity and selectivity towards different types of analytes, attributed from various mechanisms including π-π, electrostatics, hydrogen bonds, and hydrophobic and hydrophilic effects. The prospects of the materials for adsorption-based extraction were also presented, which can offer an outlook for the further development and applications.

Covalent Organic Polymers and Frameworks for Fluorescence-Based Sensors

Following the advancements and diversification in synthetic strategies for porous covalent materials in the literature, the materials science community started to investigate the performance of covalent organic polymers (COPs) and covalent organic frameworks (COFs) in applications that require large surface areas for interaction with other molecules, chemical stability, and insolubility. Sensorics is an area where COPs and COFs have demonstrated immense potential and achieved high levels of sensitivity and selectivity on account of their tunable structures. In this review, we focus on those covalent polymeric systems that use fluorescence spectroscopy as a method of detection. After briefly reviewing the physical basis of fluorescence-based sensors, we delve into various kinds of analytes that have been explored with COPs and COFs, namely, heavy metal ions, explosives, biological molecules, amines, pH, volatile organic compounds and solvents, iodine, enantiomers, gases, and anions. Throughout this work, we discuss the mechanisms involved in each sensing application and aim to quantify the potency of the discussed sensors by providing limits of detection and quenching constants when available. This review concludes with a summary of the surveyed literature and raises a few concerns that should be addressed in the future development of COP and COF fluorescence-based sensors.

Structural Characteristics and Environmental Applications of Covalent Organic Frameworks

Covalent organic frameworks (COFs) are emerging crystalline polymeric materials with highly ordered intrinsic and uniform pores. Their synthesis involves reticular chemistry, which offers the freedom of choosing building precursors from a large bank with distinct geometries and functionalities. The pore sizes of COFs, as well as their geometry and functionalities, can be pre-designed, giving them an immense opportunity in various fields. In this mini-review, we will focus on the use of COFs in the removal of environmentally hazardous metal ions and chemicals through adsorption and separation. The review will introduce basic aspects of COFs and their advantages over other purification materials. Various fabrication strategies of COFs will be introduced in relation to the separation field. Finally, the challenges of COFs and their future perspectives in this field will be briefly outlined.

Conjugated microporous polymers as an ideal platform for tunable emission via π-conjugation

Emissive conjugated microporous polymers were tunable from green to red via the π-conjugation effects in the vertex.

Sulfonate-bonded covalent organic polymer as mixed-mode sorbent for on-line solid-phase extraction of ß2-receptor agonists

A novel sulfonate-bonded covalent organic polymer (COP_TPBA-BPDA@SA) with mixed-mode interactions of hydrophobic and cation-exchange was synthesized and exploited as sorbent for on-line solid-phase extraction (on-line SPE) of ß₂-receptor agonists. The successful synthesis of COP_TPBA-BPDA@SA was confirmed by the characterization of SEM, XPS and FT-IR. Due to the excellent mixed-mode extraction ability towards the positively charged ß₂-receptor agonists and the good anti-interference performance, COP_TPBA-BPDA@SA was introduced into on-line SPE-HPLC system for selective extraction of ß₂-receptor agonists in pork and pork liver. Via the optimization of the extraction condition, including formic acid percentage and ACN percentage in the sampling solution, the mixed-mode extraction mechanism of COP_TPBA-BPDA@SA was investigated. The elution condition, such as the pH value, formic acid percentage and ACN percentage of the eluent was also optimized for the desired SPE performance. Under the optimized condition, COP_TPBA-BPDA@SA revealed better purification performance than COP_TPBA-BPDA without sulfonating. The LODs for ß₂-receptor agonists were in the range of 0.08-0.22 μg/kg, and the recoveries in different samples at three spiked levels (0.4, 4.0, 8.0 μg/kg) were ranged from 83.2% to 98.5% with RSDs less than 5.2%, which indicated the satisfactory mixed-mode extraction ability of COP_TPBA-BPDA@SA as well as the good applicability of the developed method.

Creation of Carbazole-Based Fluorescent Porous Polymers for Recognition and Detection of Various Pesticides in Water

The development of sensitive, fast, and portable methods for detecting the residual toxic pesticides is essentially important because of the increasing concerns for public health and safety. For this purpose, three fluorescent porous organic polymers containing pendant N-benzyl carbazole, N-benzyl dibromo-carbazole, and N-benzyl dimethoxy-carbazole groups were synthesized via a one-step polymerization reaction. The resultant polymers emit bright cyan, blue, and green light under the ultraviolet lamp, respectively, with the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller area up to 858 m² g^-1 and tunable pore sizes in the range of 0.5-36 nm. Six pesticides including trifluralin, isopropalin, glyphosate, fenitrothion, imidacloprid, and cyfluothrin are selected as the analytes to investigate the recognition and detection ability of polymers in terms of the different photo-physical properties of polymers, chemical structure of organic pesticides as well as the pore sizes of polymers, and molecular sizes of pesticides. It is interesting to find that, even though in water medium, the measured fluorescent quenching Stern-Volmer coefficient for trifluralin still reaches 26,040 L mol^-1 and is nearly unchanged under both acidic or basic service conditions. Moreover, the test paper prepared from the polymer exhibits a rapid fluorescent response when contacting the aqueous trifluralin dispersion liquid, and the sensitivity remains stable after recycling use for twelve times.

A comprehensive approach for the characterization of porous polymers using 13C and 15N dynamic nuclear polarization NMR spectroscopy

DNP enhanced solid-state NMR techniques are presented as powerful tools to characterize amorphous porous polymers that are of insoluble nature.

Luminescent and Swellable Conjugated Microporous Polymers for Detecting Nitroaromatic Explosives and Removing Harmful Organic Vapors

Four new conjugated microporous polymers (CMPs) were synthesized by a Buchwald-Hartwig (BH) cross-coupling reaction of tri- and tetrafunctionalized precursors to yield materials with tunable surface area and pore size distribution. This approach yielded LPCMP1-4, CMPs with significantly higher Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface areas (more than 5 times higher) than other related BH-based CMPs. These CMPs possess not only high BET specific surface areas and high chemical and thermal stabilities, but also exhibit outstanding swellability. To the best of our knowledge, swellable behavior was studied in great detail for CMPs for the first time, with the greatest degree of swelling for methanol reaching 16.5 and 16.3 mL g^-1 for LPCMP1 and LPCMP3, respectively. Owing to their excellent swellability, we further studied the adsorption capacity of these CMPs for different toxic organic vapors (including toluene and methanol). LPCMP1 and LPCMP3 adsorbed 124 and 117 mg g^-1 toluene, respectively, at saturated vapor pressure. For methanol, the adsorption capacities of LPCMP1 and LPCMP3 were up to 250 and 215 mg g^-1, respectively, which are the highest recorded values when compared with published data for CMPs, HCPs, MOFs, and porous carbons. These materials are promising candidates for the removal and elimination of hazardous organic vapors and chemical warfare agents. Moreover, all the polymers show high sensitivity to nitroaromatic explosives. LPCMP2 and LPCMP4 exhibit high selectivity for TNT and may be suitable as new candidates to selectively detect TNT for security or environmental applications.

Development of Covalent Triazine Frameworks as Heterogeneous Catalytic Supports

Covalent triazine frameworks (CTFs) are established as an emerging class of porous organic polymers with remarkable features such as large surface area and permanent porosity, high thermal and chemical stability, and convenient functionalization that promotes great potential in heterogeneous catalysis. In this article, we systematically present the structural design of CTFs as a versatile scaffold to develop heterogeneous catalysts for a variety of chemical reactions. We mainly focus on the functionalization of CTFs, including their use for incorporating and stabilization of nanoparticles and immobilization of molecular complexes onto the frameworks.

Microporous polymer based on the new compound "bi-(4-vinyl phenylquinoline) amide" for enrichment and quantitative determination of lamotrigine in rat and human serum

Lamotrigine is one of the most widely used antiepileptic drugs in the treatment of epilepsy. This kind of drug needs to be used in the long term and should be quantitatively detected in the blood of patients to avoid drug toxicity caused by individual differences and environmental and pathological changes in the process of taking. The detection of antiepileptic drugs in human blood is challenging because of their low contents and the interference of complex matrices. Thus, the sample enrichment method has been commonly used to improve the sensitivity of detection. In this work, we have synthesized a new "bi-(4-vinyl phenylquinoline) amide" compound and used it as the monomer to produce the hyper-cross-linked microporous polymer for the enrichment of lamotrigine. This material has a high adsorption capacity, specificity, and linearity, which can improve the detection sensitivity of lamotrigine by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The mechanism of this phenomenon has also been investigated. Finally, we have developed the microporous polymer enrichment coupled with HPLC method for the quantitative determination of lamotrigine in rat and human serum samples. This method has excellent precision, accuracy, and recovery, meeting the test of biological sample. The low limit of quantitation was 0.625 μg/mL. Graphical abstract.

Functional π-Conjugated Two-Dimensional Covalent Organic Frameworks

Fingerprints of π-conjugated compounds are ubiquitous in nature and play a crucial part in human existence. For instance, cis-retinal, an endogenous π-conjugated molecule present in the eye, performs a vital role in the function of visual perception. π-Conjugated molecules have also received a great deal of attention owing to their intriguing optical properties and created a surge in optoelectronics. Varieties of π-conjugated molecules/oligomers have been developed and explored for a number of applications such as organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs), organic field-effect transistors (OFETs), organic photovoltaics (OPVs), and sensors, among others. While the extended π-delocalization in one-dimensional (1D) polymers versus oligomers produce superior optical and electronic properties, further extension of π-delocalization to the second dimension (2D) is expected to give rise even more intriguing properties as revealed by theoretical studies. As a matter of fact, graphene is the best example of 2D-conjugated polymers, but its zero-band-gap behavior is a major impediment for semiconducting applications. In contrast, it was challenging to prepare 2D crystalline polymers until the discovery of boroxine/boronate ester linked covalent organic frameworks (COFs) by Yaghi and co-workers. COFs are a new class of porous crystalline polymers in which organic building blocks are held together by covalent bonds. These polymers exhibit potential applications in gas storage, energy storage, photocatalyst, heterogeneous catalysis, sensors, etc. However, the first π-conjugated COF was realized in 2009 via the introduction of imine linker (-C═N-) between the building blocks. Since then, wide varieties of COFs with various π-delocalization promoting spacers have been developed and explored their electronic and optical properties and pertinent applications. In this review, we will highlight the importance of 2D π-conjugated COFs and their achievements in developing novel functionalities.

Covalent organic framework-based electrochemical aptasensors for the ultrasensitive detection of antibiotics

We designed and synthesized a novel covalent organic framework (COF) by condensation polymerization of 1,3,6,8-tetrakis(4-formylphenyl)pyrene and melamine through imine bonds (represented by Py-M-COF). The basic characterizations revealed that the Py-M-COF not only exhibited an extended π-conjugation framework, a large specific surface area (495.5 m² g^-1), big pore cavities, and nanosheet-like structure but also possessed rich functional groups, such as C˭C, C˭N, C˭O, and NH₂. These features endowed the Py-M-COF with high charge carrier mobility, further improving the strong immobilization of DNA aptamer strands via π-π stacking interaction and electrostatic interaction. As such, the Py-M-COF-based electrochemical aptasensors are ultrasensitive in detecting different antibiotics, including enrofloxacin (ENR) and ampicillin (AMP), yielding extremely low detection limits of 6.07 and 0.04 fg mL^-1 (S/N = 3) toward ENR and AMP, respectively, along with other excellent sensing performances. This biosensing platform based on Py-M-COF has potential applications for the sensitive detection of antibiotics or other analytes by replacing the corresponding aptamers.

A hybrid triazine-imine core-shell magnetic covalent organic polymer for analysis of pesticides in fruit samples by ultra high performance liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry

A novel hybrid triazine-imine core-shell magnetic covalent organic polymer with high adsorption capacity and excellent stability was fabricated by surface-assisted in situ growth technique. The composite possesses porous and extended π-conjugated system, and was applied as the magnetic sorbent for efficient enrichment and rapid separation of pesticides. A new analytical method for simultaneous determination of eight pesticides in fruit samples was developed by magnetic solid phase extraction combined with ultra high performance liquid chromatography and tandem mass spectrometry. The effect of extraction time, desorption time, and the type of desorption solvent on the extraction efficiency were evaluated. The established method shows good repeatability and high sensitivity. The repeatability of this method was estimated with relative standard deviations in the range of 0.7-7.0% (n = 5) for the same batch, and 1.7-10% (n = 3) for batch to batch. Good linearity for eight pesticides was obtained with coefficient of determination in the range of 0.9942-0.9990. Limit of detections ranged from 0.4 to 1.2 ng/L. Real sample determination showed that four and two pesticides were detected in strawberry and grape, respectively. The results demonstrated that the established method was efficient, sensitive, and convenient for trace determination of pesticides in fruit samples.

Thiophene containing microporous and mesoporous nanoplates for separation of mercury from aqueous solution

Thiophene-based novel porous polymeric nanoplates synthesized through a template free approach show high mercury capture efficiency from contaminated water and may be promising for environmental applications.

Cost-effective preparation of microporous polymers from formamide derivatives and adsorption of CO2 under dry and humid conditions

Nitrogen-rich microporous polymers are prepared via a catalyst-free polymerization reaction using formamide derivatives as monomers, which exhibit outstandingly high CO₂/N₂ selectivity up to 151 and 173 at 273 K under dry and humid conditions, respectively.

Dispersible microporous diblock copolymer nanoparticles via polymerisation-induced self-assembly

Dispersible microporous polymer nanoparticles formed via the RAFT-PISA polymerisation of divinylbenzene and fumaronitrile using a PEG macro-CTA.

Direct synthesis of covalent triazine-based frameworks (CTFs) through aromatic nucleophilic substitution reactions

Despite extensive efforts, only three main strategies have been developed to synthesize covalent triazine-based frameworks (CTFs) thus far. We report herein a totally new synthetic strategy which allows C–C bonds in the CTFs to be formed through aromatic nucleophilic substitution reactions. The as-synthesized CTF-1 and CTF-2 exhibited photocatalytic water splitting activity comparable to the CTFs made using ionothermal or Brønsted acid-catalyzed polymerization. Interestingly, CTF-2 distinguished itself by its two-photon fluorescence (emission at ∼530 nm under irradiation at either 400 nm or 800 nm).

Triazine-based frameworks (CTFs) were synthesized through a new synthetic strategy in which C–C bonds were formed through aromatic nucleophilic substitution reaction.

Pyrene Bearing Azo-Functionalized Porous Nanofibers for CO2 Separation and Toxic Metal Cation Sensing

A novel luminescent azo-linked polymer (ALP) has been constructed from 1,3,6,8-tetra(4-aminophenyl)pyrene using a copper(I)-catalyzed oxidative homocoupling reaction. The polymer displays high porosity with a Brunauer-Emmett-Teller surface area of 1259 m² g^-1 and narrow pore size distribution (1.06 nm) and is able to take up a significant amount of CO₂ (2.89 mmol g^-1) at 298 K and 1.00 bar with a high isosteric heat of adsorption of 27.5 kJ mol^-1. Selectivity studies applying the ideal adsorbed solution theory revealed that the novel polymer has moderately good selectivities for CO₂/N₂ (55.1) and CO₂/CH₄ (10.9). Furthermore, the ALP shows fluorescence quenching in the presence of Hg²⁺, Pb²⁺, Tl⁺, and Al³⁺ ions. Compared with these ions, the ALP showed no sensitivity to light metal ions such as Na⁺, K⁺, and Ca²⁺ in ethanol-water solution, clearly indicating the high selectivity of the ALP toward heavy metal ions. The exceptional physiochemical stability, high porosity, and strong luminescence make this polymer an excellent candidate as a fluorescent chemical sensor for the detection of heavy metal ions.

Siloxane-Based Nanoporous Polymers with Narrow Pore-size Distribution for Cell Imaging and Explosive Detection

Porous polymers are among the most promising porous materials for various application because they show the combined advantages of fluorescent porous materials and polymers. This study developed a cell imaging technique based on luminescent porous organosilicon polymers (LPOPs) that were synthesized via Friedel-Crafts reaction of octaphenylcyclotetrasiloxane with octavinylsilsesquioxanes. The porous organosilicon polymers possessed narrow pore-size distribution, high surface area, and monomodal nanopores centered at approximately 0.59 nm. The excellent properties to the porous polymers can be attributed to the fine structures of LPOPs. LPOP-2 owned the highest fluorescence intensity and micropore volume ratio in LPOPs and showed high selectivity for Fe³⁺ detection and excellent sensitivity to nitroaromatic compound detection. Interestingly, these porous polymers still exhibited excellent responsiveness to Fe³⁺ ion even when inside of living cells. We also fabricated a paper-based sensor using LPOP-2 to develop a simple method for visual detection of explosives. This rapid and visual paper sensor demonstrates promising application for explosive detection and can be expanded for the detection of other analytes.