Preparation and Gas Permeation of Helical Polyphenylacetylene Membrane

Three chiral polyphenylacetylene monomers and an achiral polyphenylacetylene monomer were copolymerized in different proportions using the achiral catalytic system ((nbd)Rh+［η6-(C6H5)B-(C6H5)3］) to give soluble high molecular weight copolymer of phenylacetylenes. The obtained copolymers were made into membranes by solvent evaporation method, and circular dichroism(CD) was used to test the secondary structure of the copolymers. Results showed that the membrane had priority permeability on CO2. The copolymers formed one-handed helical structure in the main chains.