Block Copolymer Template-Directed Catalytic Systems: Recent Progress and Perspectives

Abstract

Fabrication of block copolymer (BCP) template-assisted nano-catalysts has been a subject of immense interest in the field of catalysis and polymer chemistry for more than two decades now. Different methods, such as colloidal route, on-substrate methods, bulk self-assembly approaches, combined approaches, and many others have been used to prepare such nano-catalysts. The present review focuses on the advances made in this direction using diblock, triblock, and other types of BCP self-assembled structures. It will be shown how interestingly, researchers have exploited the features of tunable periodicity, domain orientation, and degree of lateral orders of self-assembled BCPs by using fundamental approaches, as well as using different combinations of simple methods to fabricate efficient catalysts. These approaches allow for fabricating catalysts that are used for the growth of single- and multi-walled carbon nanotubes (CNTs) on the substrate, size-dependent electrooxidation of the carbon mono oxide, cracking of 1,3,5-triisopropylbenzene (TIPB), methanol oxidation, formic acid oxidation, and for catalytic degradation of dyes and water pollutants, etc. The focus will also be on how efficient and ease-of-use catalysts can be fabricated using different BCP templates, and how these have contributed to the fabrication of different nano-catalysts, such as nanoparticle array catalysts, strawberry and Janus-like nanoparticles catalysts, mesoporous nanoparticles and film catalysts, gyroid-based bicontinuous catalysts, and hollow fiber membrane catalysts.

Three-dimensional artificial chirality towards low-cost and ultra-sensitive enantioselective sensing

“…Block copolymers composed of more than one species of monomer linked by chemical bonds have also been used as chiral assemblies. 35 The morphologies of block copolymers depend on the thermal equilibrium condition with respect to the volume fraction of monomer blocks. Thus, various morphologies, such as lamellae and cylinders, and even chiral geometries, like gyroid, 36,37 spiral, 38–40 toroid, 41 and helix, can be obtained by exploiting phase separation and reconstructions of block copolymers.…”

Block Copolymer-Templated Au@CdSe Core-Satellite Nanostructures with Solvent-Dependent Optical Properties

“…Block copolymers (BCPs) have gained remarkable attention as crucial materials for controlling the spatial positioning of various types as well as multiple types of nanoparticles. − For example, Haridas and Basu have demonstrated the fabrication of hybrid arrays comprising CdSe QDs and AuNPs using BCP thin films as templates. Lü et al have demonstrated a quick and efficient way to precisely control the dispersion and localization of QDs in BCP micelles via coordination interaction.…”

Self‐assembly of side‐chain liquid crystalline block copolymers to anisotropic polymeric nanoparticles

“…Among these, self-assembly of rod-rod BCPs was rarely studied because of severe polymerization conditions. Spherical micelles and vesicles could be easily obtained via self-assembly of coil-coil BCPs, showing extensive applications as templates, 5,6 catalysts, 7,8 nanoreactors, 9,10 etc. However, the phase region of the nonspherical morphologies is extremely narrow, 11 which restricts some morphology-dependent applications in biomedicine, [12][13][14] stimuliresponsive materials, [15][16][17][18][19] controlled drug delivery systems, 20,21 and so on.…”