The structure-property relationships of Polymers of Intrinsic Microporosity (PIMs)

Based on almost 20 years of published research, the structure-property relationships of Polymers of Intrinsic Microporosity (PIMs) are considered. Following an analysis of the structure of the archetypal PIM-1 and how it contributes to its now well-understood properties, the key properties of solubility, thermal properties, gas adsorption and gas permeability are related to the structures of more recently prepared PIMs. In order to deliver their technological potential, it is recommended that further synthetic effort should focus both on broadening the structural diversity of PIMs and providing synthetically accessible variants.