Nanoporous thermosetting polymers

Applications of nanoporous thermosetting polymers include polyelectrolytes in fuel cells, separation membranes, and sensors. Design of nanoporous polymers for such applications entails controlling permeability by tailoring the pore size, structure and interface chemistry. A novel technique for the synthesis of nanoporous thermosets via reactive encapsulation of an inert solvent using step-growth crosslinking polymerization without micro/macroscopic phase separation was presented. Investigation of the resulting network pore structures by scanning electron microscopy and small angle X-ray scattering following extraction and supercritical drying using CO₂ showed that nanoporous polymeric materials with pore sizes ranging from 1 to 50 nm can be synthesized by varying solvent content. Permeation studies were carried out using these materials with phenyl glycidyl ether as the permeant for membrane applications. The chemical activity of the nanoporous materials obtained by the method could be tailored by grafting appropriate functional groups at the pore interface. This is an abstract of a paper presented at the 228th ACS National Meeting (Philadelphia, PA, 8/22-26/2004).