| A series of Molecularly Imprinted Polymers(MIPS) were sythesised using the imprint molecule 4-nitrophenol as a product analogue. The imprinted polymers were characterized by means of modern analyses, such as infrared spectroscopy, surface and pore analysis. The enzymatic performances of the imprinted polymers were evaluated by catalyzing the nitration reaction of toluene. The effect of type of solvent and functional monomers, as well as degree of cross-linking on the regioselectivity of nitration reaction, has been studied. The results indicate that the imprinted polymers showed a high regioselectivity compared to that of the control unimprinted polymers, the imprinted polymers sythesised by methacrylic acid as functional monomer and acetonitrile as solvent exhibited very high regioselectivity, yielding up to 49.6% pare and 44.1% ortho isomer of nitrotoluene. |
