Efficient Iodine Uptake of Ultra Thermally Stable Conjugated Copolymers Bearing Biaceanthrylenyl Moieties and Contorted Aromatic Units Using a [3 + 2] Palladium-Catalyzed Cyclopolymerization Reaction

[Image: see text] A novel series of copolymers made from alternating aromatic surrogates with contorted and spiro compounds, denoted as BCP1–3, was successfully synthesized employing a palladium-catalyzed one-pot [3 + 2] cyclopentannulation reaction. The resulting copolymers BCP1–3, which were isolated in high yields, exhibited weight-average molecular weights (M(w)) ranging from 11.0 to 61.5 kg mol(–1) (kDa) and polydispersity index (M(w)/M(n)) values in the range of 1.7 and 2.0, which suggest a narrow molecular weight distribution, thus indicating the formation of uniform copolymer chains. Investigation of the thermal properties of BCP1–3 by thermogravimetric analysis disclosed outstanding stability with 10% weight loss temperature values reaching 800 °C. Iodine adsorption tests revealed remarkable results, particularly for BCP2, which demonstrated a strong affinity toward iodine reaching an uptake of 2900 mg g(–1). Additionally, recyclability tests showcased the effective regeneration of BCP2 after several successive iodine adsorption–desorption cycles.