CO2-Responsive Polymers. II. Applications

Interest in CO2-responsive systems has received significant research attention in recent years. CO2, which is a benign, inexpensive, abundant, and non-toxic gas, could be used as a green trigger for CO2 responsive materials. Among the CO2-responsive materials that have been developed, polymer-based materials are of particular interest. To have CO2-responsivity in polymers, CO2-responsive moieties in the structure of polymer are required; these moieties can be originated from a surfactant, monomer and initiator. These polymers exhibit reversible changes in chemical structures and/or physical properties in response to the addition or removal of CO2, and are being considered for application in a variety of fields including controlled drug delivery, reversible cells capture, catalysis, switchable latexes, and oil/water separation. CO2 responsive polymers have been used in the form of latexes, solvents, gels, surfactants, and electrospun nanofibrous membranes. This review article focuses on applied aspects of CO2-responsive materials by emphasizing on polymeric materials. In this review paper, first, we present the general aspects of CO2-responsivity, and then provide numerous examples of applying the chemistry of CO2-responsivness to the preparation of CO2-responsive polymers. We intend to highlight those applications which are more promising commercially.