Synthesis of poly(isopropenylphenoxy propylene carbonate) and its facile side‐chain functionalization into hydroxy‐polyurethanes

4‐Isopropenyl phenol ( 4‐IPP ) is a versatile dual functional intermediate that can be prepared readily from bisphenol‐A ( BPA ). Through etherification with epichlorohydrin to the phenolic group of 4‐IPP , it can be converted into 4‐isopropenyl phenyl glycidyl ether ( IPGE ). On further reaction with carbon dioxide in the presence of tetra‐n‐butyl ammonium bromide ( TBAB ) as the catalyst, IPGE was transformed into 4‐isopropenylphenoxy propylene carbonate ( IPPC ) in 90% yield. Cationic polymerization of IPPC with strong acid such as trifluoromethanesulfonic acid or boron trifluoride diethyl etherate as the catalyst at ?40 °C gave a linear poly(isopropenylphenoxy propylene carbonate), poly( IPPC ), with multicyclic carbonate groups substituted uniformly at the side‐chains of the polymer. The cyclic carbonate groups of poly( IPPC ) were further reacted with different aliphatic amines and diamines resulting in formation of polymers with hydroxy‐polyurethane on side‐chains. Syntheses, characterizations of poly( IPPC ) and its conversion into hydroxy‐polyurethane crosslinked polymers were presented. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2016 , 54, 802–808     

Tailorable PC71BM Isomers: Using the Most Prevalent Electron Acceptor to Obtain High‐Performance Polymer Solar Cells

Despite being widely used as electron acceptor in polymer solar cells, commercially available PC₇₁BM (phenyl‐C₇₁‐butyric acid methyl ester) usually has a “random” composition of mixed regioisomers or stereoisomers. Here PC₇₁BM has been isolated into three typical isomers, α‐, β₁‐ and β₂‐PC₇₁BM, to establish the isomer‐dependent photovoltaic performance on changing the ternary composition of α‐, β₁‐ and β₂‐PC₇₁BM. Mixing the isomers in a ratio of α/β₁/β₂=8:1:1 resulted in the best power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 7.67 % for the polymer solar cells with PTB7:PC₇₁BM as photoactive layer (PTB7=poly[[4,8‐bis[(2‐ethylhexyl)oxy]benzo[1,2‐b:4,5‐b′]dithiophene‐2,6‐diyl][3‐fluoro‐2‐[(2‐ethylhexyl)carbonyl]thieno[3,4‐b]thiophenediyl]]). The three typical PC₇₁BM isomers, even though sharing similar LUMO energy levels and light absorption, render starkly different photovoltaic performances with average‐performing PCE of 1.28–7.44 % due to diverse self‐aggregation of individual or mixed PC₇₁BM isomers in the otherwise same polymer solar cells.     

Enhanced Catalytic Activity in Liquid‐Exfoliated FeOCl Nanosheets as a Fenton‐Like Catalyst

A facile liquid‐phase exfoliation method to prepare few‐layer FeOCl nanosheets in acetonitrile by ultrasonication is reported. The detailed exfoliation mechanism and generated products were investigated by combining first‐principle calculations and experimental approaches. The similar cleavage energies of FeOCl (340 mJ m^?2) and graphite (320 mJ m^?2) confirm the experimental exfoliation feasibility. As a Fenton reagent, FeOCl nanosheets showed outstanding properties in the catalytic degradation of phenol in water at room temperature, under neutral pH conditions, and with sunlight irradiation. Apart from the increased surface area of the nanosheets, the surface state change of the nanosheets also plays a key role in improving the catalytic performance. The changes of charge density, density of states (DOS), and valence state of Fe atoms in the exfoliated FeOCl nanosheets versus plates illustrated that surface atomistic relationships made the few‐layer nanosheets higher activity, indicating the exfoliation process of the FeOCl nanosheets also brought about surface state changes.