Electropolymerization without an electric power supply
Suguru Iwai, Taichi Suzuki, Hiroki Sakagami, Kazuhiro Miyamoto, Zhenghao Chen, Mariko Konishi, Elena Villani, Naoki Shida, Ikuyoshi Tomita, Shinsuke Inagi
Abstract
Electrifying synthesis is now a common slogan among synthetic chemists. In addition to the conventional two- or three-electrode systems that use batch-type cells, recent progress in organic electrochemical processes has been significant, including microflow electrochemical reactors, Li-ion battery-like technology, and bipolar electrochemistry. Herein we demonstrate an advanced electrosynthesis method without the application of electric power based on the concept of streaming potential-driven bipolar electrochemistry. As a proof-of-concept study, the electrochemical oxidative polymerization of aromatic monomers successfully yielded the corresponding polymer films on an electrode surface, which acted as an anode under the flow of electrolyte in a microchannel without an electric power supply.