Microporous organic nanotube networks from hyper cross-linking core-shell bottlebrush copolymers for selective adsorption study

We report a synthesis of microporous organic nanotube networks (MONNs) by a combination of hyper cross-linking and molecular templating of core-shell bottlebrush copolymers. The intrabrush and interbrush cross-linking of polystyrene (PS) shell layer in the core-shell bottlebrush copolymers led to the formation of micropores and large-sized nanopores (meso/macrospores) in MONNs, respectively, while selective removal of polylactide (PLA) core layer generated mesoporous tubular structure. The size of PLA-templated mesoporous cores and porous structure both at micro- and meso-scale could be controlled by simple tuning of the ratio of core/shell or the PLA core fraction in the bottlebrush precursors. Moreover, the resultant MONNs showed a highly selective adsorption capacity for the positively charged dyes on the basis of multi-porosity and carboxylate group-rich structure. In addition, MONNs also exhibited effective performance in size-selective adsorption of biomacromolecules. This work represents a new avenue for the preparation of MONNs and also provides a new application for molecular bottlebrushes in nanotechnology.