Preparation of topologically defective carbons by atomic imprinting for catalyzing the chemical oxidative polymerization of 3-aminophenylboronic acid

Poly (3-aminophenylboronic acid) is an important boronic acid-based functional polymer, but its synthesis is difficult owing to the boronic acid group in 3-aminophenylboronic acid (ABA) has a strong electron-withdrawing effect. A topologically defective carbon-based catalyst with nanotubular morphology is developed by ammonia-assisted atomic imprinting and applied to facilitate the polymerization of ABA. Catalytic experiments show that the catalyst can greatly increase the polymerization rate of ABA and also significantly improve the quality of the polymer. The study of catalytic mechanism reveals the interaction between ABA (and its derivatives) and various structures of the catalyst, including electron-transfer-based interactions between ABA and topological defects as well as spatial confinement effects between ABA and nanospace structures. Under the combined influence of the above effects, ABA achieves efficient polymerization centered on topological defects. Consequently, this study demonstrates a carbon-based catalytic system that can efficiently promote the chemical oxidative polymerization of ABA.