Recent advances in the synthesis of catechol-derived (bio)polymers for applications in energy storage and environment

This review reports the recent advances in the most important and straightforward synthetic protocols for incorporating catechols into (bio)polymers, and discusses the emerging applications of these innovative multifunctional materials in biomedical, energy storage and environmental applications. In the last five years, new well-defined polymer structures with tuneable composition and functionality were introduced by the careful combination of catechol protection/deprotection chemistry with controlled polymerization techniques. These new synthetic pathways have facilitated the optimal design of the material that perfectly fits the target application. Although most current researches exploit the adhesive properties of catechols for designing glues or (multi)functional coatings, recent breakthroughs have shown that catechols have much more to offer in other areas, especially those where they act as reversible redox units to store electrons/metal cations for the design of “next-generation” safe, economical and sustainable energy storage devices. These emerging applications of potential high impact in our daily life are now discussed in this review together with the new synthetic routes to unprecedented precise catechol-bearing polymers. Additional objectives of this review are to discuss some important critical issues regarding the stability and reactivity of catechols, and to propose our vision for the future development of this field.