Imidazolium-Functionalized Ionic Porous Aromatic Frameworks for CO2 Capture and In Situ Conversion

CO2 capture and conversion are of great significance for the growing environmental problems and energy shortages, and investigating new materials for this purpose has become an important strategic plan for the world. Benefiting from the porous texture and easily functionalized framework, two ionic PAFs (iPAF-167 and iPAF-168) are synthesized as promising candidates for CO2 capture and conversion. The imidazolium groups are incorporated by a pre-synthesis method, and their numbers are rationally regulated. Compared to the ion-free PAFs (PAF-167 and PAF-168), these two iPAFs exhibit highly selective CO2 adsorption abilities together with excellent catalytic activities on the synthesis of cyclic carbonate. Meanwhile, the possible catalytic mechanism is proposed. Notably, both iPAF-167 and iPAF-168 can capture CO2 from the gas mixture (CO2/N2 = 1:4) and then realize in situ conversion of allyl glyceryl ether into corresponding cyclic carbonate.