Synthesis of Highly Stable Porous Metal-Iminodiacetic Acid Gels from A Novel IDA Compound.

In this work, a novel and simple flexible aromatic multi-carboxylate compound N, N′-(4,4′-biphenylyl) iminodiacetic acid (BP-IDA) was synthesized, with which two new stable metal-IDA gels (denoted as MIG1 and MIG2) with three-dimensional network structures have been prepared successfully by employing Cr3+ and Al3+ as the metal ions, respectively. The rheological performance was investigated by means of dynamic rheology measurement. The morphology and microstructure were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and X-ray diffraction technique. Nitrogen sorption isotherm measurement suggests that the MIG1 aerogel has considerable porosity with the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller specific surface area up to 760 m2·g−1. Owing to easy preparation, good stability, and three-dimensional network structure, the as-prepared metal-organic gels will possess potential applications in separation, catalysis, and drug delivery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]