Porous nano-catalysts by electrostatic assembly of polymerized ionic liquids-stabilized nanoparticles – NANOCAPIL

In NANOCAPIL, we propose to develop a new class of highly active, selective and recyclable porous nano-catalysts by a non-covalent assembly strategy. Hence, cationic polymerized ionic liquids (PILs)-stabilized metallic nanoparticles (MNPs) will be electrostatically complexed with polyanions to build 3D porous networks with unprecedented catalytic properties. Unlike conventional strategies, this methodology will enable to translate the chemo-selectivity of isolated MNPs to the targeted 3D network by preserving the micro-environment around the NPs. Porosity will lead to enhanced mass-transfer processes for high catalytic activity.
Main objectives concern i) the synthesis of the polymer/MNPs hybrid networks by varying the characteristics of the building blocks ii) the characterization of the system at multi-length scales to establish structure/property relationships, iii) the study of the catalytic properties in relation with the structuration of the network. Selected transformations of both fundamental and industrial interests, such as the selective hydrogenation of multi-functional substrates, will be investigated with a particular emphasis on selectivity issues.