Catalysts, general synthetic polymer

The newer type of colloidal catalysts have been prepared containing palladium (4), platinum (4), rhodium (5), and iridium (6). A variety of synthetic polymers has been applied. Among those tested were polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), polyvinyl acetate (PVAc), polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), and polymethyl acrylate (PAMA). In general, polyvinyl alcohol (4a) has been found most satisfactory. 

Optically active synthetic polymers such as poly(trityl methacrylate) supported on silica gel [7,8] as well as poly(ethylene glycol dimethacrylate) cross-linked in the presence of an optically active template [9] have found general use as chiral stationary phases for the optical resolution of various racemates by chromatography. A current area of investigation concerns the use of optically active polymers as reagents and catalysts for asymmetric synthesis [10,11,12]. 

Analyzing different catalysts by means of an oscillatory reaction conducted in open and closed reactors as a matrix, it was shown that their characterization under mentioned conditions is, generally, possible and useful. Thus, by comparison with respect to dynamical effects of several catalysts in the matrix reaction system, the stmcture of active centers should be discussed. Particularly, analyzing two catalysts for hydrogen peroxide decomposition, the natural enzyme peroxidase and synthetic polymer-supported catalyst, the similarity in their catalytic activity is found. Hence, we can note that the evolution of the matrix oscillatory reaction can be used for determination of the enzyme activity. Moreover, one can see that the analysis of the granulation and active surface may also be performed by the oscillatory reaction. 

A large number of conducting polymers can be synthesised via the use of catalysts [28-30], but generally little control can be exercised over the morphology of the product and purification of the material obtained can be problematical. In recent years however, a number of alternative synthetic routes have been devised which involve soluble precursor polymers which can be more easily purified and cast onto substrates, with subsequent conversion (usually by heating) to the desired product, and... 

Molecular catalysts, often in the form of metal ions complexed to a suitable ligand, can also be attached to dendrimer surfaces [3,9,10,93,94,96,148,149]. Such materials are generally structurally better defined than catalysts bounded to linear polymers, but like random-polymer catalysts they can be easily separated from reaction products. Note, however, that this approach results in a synthetic dead-end as far as further manipulation of the terminal groups is concerned, and thus some of the advantages of using dendrimers, such as solubility modulation, are lost. 

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