The paper by the former JSPS researcher, Dr. LI, Zhongping (Nagao laboratory of Materials Chemistry Area), Mr. YAO, Yuze (1st year doctoral student in Nagao laboratory of Materials Chemistry Area), Ms. WANG, Dongjin (2nd year master student in Nagao laboratory of Materials Chemistry Area), HASAN, Md Mahmudul (2nd year doctoral student in Nagao laboratory of Materials Chemistry Area), SUWANSOONTORN, Athchaya (2nd year doctoral student in Nagao laboratory of Materials Chemistry Area), DU, Gang (2nd year master student in Nagao laboratory of Materials Chemistry Area), LIU, Zhaohan (1st year master student in Nagao laboratory of Materials Chemistry Area) et al. was selected as Hot Article in Materials Chemistry Frontiers published by Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC).

This work is a joint research with Dr. He Li, Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences.

■Date of selection
June 3, 2020

■Title
Simple and universal synthesis of sulfonated porous organic polymers with high proton conductivity

■Authors
Zhongping Li, Yuze Yao, Dongjin Wang, Md. Mahmudul Hasan, Athchaya Suwansoontorn, He Li, Gang Du, Zhaohan Liu, and Yuki Nagao (Z. Li, Y. Yao, and D. Wang contributed equally.)

■Abstract
With the rapid development of economic integration and regional conservation worldwide, the growth of green and sustainable resources has attracted great attention. Polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEFC) is a model of green, resource-saving, and environmental protection energy. We synthesized various porous organic polymers (POPs) via simple and cost-effective methods, which are applicable to most aromatic framework. Sulfonated POPs with high-density sulfonic acid groups were prepared through post-sulfonation. The obtained electrolytes exhibited excellent proton conductivity of 10^-2 to 10^-1 S cm^-1. Results of this study indicate that the structure of sulfonated POPs offers a simple and universal synthetic method for evolving structural design for highly proton-conductive materials.

■Comment
It is a great honor for us to be selected as the Hot Article at Materials Chemistry Frontiers. I would like to gratitude to Prof. Yuki Nagao, Dr. He Li, and all our lab members for contributions and support to this work. I also appreciate the support by JSPS. We believe that this research is a step towards achieving our research goals and inspiring us to do better in the future.

July 7,2020