New Organic Nanoporous Polymers and Their Inclusion Complexes

By cross-linking cyclodextrin molecules with bifunctional linkers, we have synthesized a new class of nanoporous polymers with a narrow pore size distribution (ca. 1 nm). These polymers behave like nanosponges that spontaneously absorb common organic molecules from aqueous solutions. The significance is that such materials may be useful for ultrapure water applications which are critical for semiconductor manufacturing.