Triazatriangulenium-based porous organic polymers for carbon dioxide capture

Abstract

Porous organic polymers from triazatriangulenium salts (TAPOPs) were developed via oxidative polymerization. FeCl₃-caused chlorination on the triazatriangulenium core was observed, which has a pronounced impact on the photophysical properties and porosity of the polymers. Optimization of reaction conditions affords TAPOPs with a Brunauer–Emmett–Teller specific surface area as high as 940 m² g⁻¹ and a carbon dioxide uptake capacity up to 15.4 wt% at 273 K and 1.0 bar. Furthermore, the reversible and preferred adsorption of TAPOPs toward carbon dioxide over nitrogen is not only demonstrated by gas sorption experiments but also gas–sorbent interaction measurements through recording the emission change of TAPOPs under different gas atmospheres using fluorescence microscopy.