The Friedel–Crafts (FC) reaction is a prominent
synthetic
tool for rapidly constructing complex molecular frameworks, but syntheses
of carbazole-based nanoporous organic polymers (CNOPs) via FC hydroxyalkylation
are rare. Herein we report the acid-catalyzed FC hydroxyalkylation
synthesis of two CNOP networks, prepared (using p-phthalaldehyde) from 1,3,5-tris(9-carbazolyl)benzene and tris[4-(9H-carbazol-9-yl)phenyl]amine. The specific surface areas
of the CNOPs ranged from 1374 to 1546 m2/g, and the CNOPs
had a hierarchical porous structure with pore sizes ranging from 0.87
to 6.60 nm. Furthermore, the high porosity in conjunction with abundant
carbazole units in the CNOPs enabled excellent adsorption performance
toward C2H6, CO2, and CH4. CNOP-2 derived from 1,3,5-tris(9-carbazolyl)benzene and p-phthalaldehyde displayed C2H6, CO2, and CH4 uptakes of up to 98.7, 90.2, and 30.7
cm3/g, respectively, at 1 bar and 273 K. Also, the adsorption
selectivities of the CNOPs in conjunction with C2H6/CH4 and CO2/CH4 gas mixtures
were 23.4–23.5 and 6.4–7.3, respectively. This work
demonstrates a cost-effective FC reaction that can be used to design
and construct carbazole-based nanoporous organic polymers.