Preparation of Nanofibers Mats Derived from Task-Specific Polymeric Ionic Liquid for Sensing and Catalytic Applications

Nanofibers mats derived from the task-specific functionalized polymeric ionic liquids based on homocysteine thiolactone are obtained by electrospinning them as blends with polyvinylpyrrolidone. The presence of this functional moiety allowed the post-functionalization of these mats through the aminolysis of the thiolactone ring in the presence of an amine by a thiol–alkene “click” reaction. Under controlled experimental conditions the modification can be performed introducing different functionalization and crosslinking of the electrospun fibers, while maintaining the nanostructure obtained by the electrospinning. Initial studies suggest that the nanofibers based on these functionalized polymeric ionic liquids can be used in both sensing and catalytic applications.

Advances in polymeric ionic liquids-based smart polymeric materials: emerging fabrication strategies

Polymeric ionic liquids (PILs) are a class of materials characterized by fascinating physicochemical properties as well as tunable functionality that are quite interesting for the fabrication of materials. They have attracted tremendous attention because they are easy to prepare and can be manipulated into a polymeric matrix via covalent and noncovalent linkage/interactions to form new intelligent/smart polymeric materials with improved properties and multiple functionalities for application in many fields. These new materials are specially designed to change their performance properties when subjected to external environmental stimuli including pH, temperature, light, chemicals and electromagnetic fields. Therefore, this chapter presents the progress in the preparation of PILs via different polymerization reactions and highlights the emerging advances in the fabrication of PILs-based smart polymeric materials.