Siraprapa Somsri, Mohan Gopalakrishnan, Thanchanok Ratvijitvech, Thanapat Worakul, Panida Surawatanawong, Naoto Kuwamura, Takumi Konno, Bunyarat Rungtaweevoranit, Preeyanuch Sangtrirutnugul

The increase of CO₂ concentrations in the atmosphere contributes to climate change, which negatively impacts the well-beings of human, wildlife, and the biodiversity. One approach to reduce CO₂ emissions into the atmosphere is through carbon capture and utilization (CCU) to produce value-added products. This work investigates the synthesis of nitrogen-rich, porous organic polymers using a Cu-catalyzed click reaction and their use as catalysts for converting CO₂ into cyclic carbonates. These carbonates are useful as green solvents, electrolytes in lithium batteries, and monomers for polycarbonates. The synthesized organic polymers have a flexible tertiary amine core linked with rigid aromatic groups through 1,2,3-triazole units. They are easy to produce and show strong CO₂ adsorption, likely due to their high nitrogen content (21–27 wt% N). Although they have low surface areas, these click-based polymers, combined with the co-catalyst NBu₄Br, effectively convert CO₂ and epoxide into cyclic carbonates under mild conditions. Additionally, the most efficient catalyst, containing a 1,4-phenylene linker (TB-C), can be reused for five cycles without losing activity or requiring reactivation.