Twenty-six new chelating polymers containing pyridyl (Py) or bipyridyl (Bipy) units as ligating centers were synthesized by free-radical reactions of 2-vinylpyridine, 4-vinylpyridine, or 4-methyl-4Ј-vinyl-2,2Ј-bipyridine with different dimethacrylate crosslinkers and evaluated for heavy metal ion sorption from aqueous solutions. Both the Py-and Bipy-containing polymers are highly selective for Cu(II) over Co(II) and Ni(II) and for Hg(II) over Cd(II). The polymeric materials with Bipy binding sites generally exhibit more efficient metal ion sorption than do the corresponding Pycontaining copolymers. The metal ion sorption capacity of the copolymer also depends on the structure of the dimethacrylate crosslinker.

A series of eighteen 4‐vinylpyridine and 4‐methyl‐4′‐vinylbipyridine copolymers with different crosslinkers was examined as sorbents for the noble metal ions of Ag(I), Au(III), Pd(II), and Pt(II) from aqueous solutions. The chelating polymers possess appreciable sorption selectivity for Au(III) over Ag(I) and for Pd(II) over Pt(II). Binding abilities of the copolymers toward the noble metal ions vary as the identity of the chelating heterocyclic amine moiety and the structure of the crosslinkers are altered. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 80: 207–213, 2001