Monodispersed Molecularly Imprinted Polymer Beads with Enhanced Atrazine Retention Ability Synthesized with Polymeric Diluents

Abstract

Molecular imprinting technique was applied for the preparation of polymer beads selected for a triazine herbicide, atrazine. Polystyrene, poly(methyl methacrylate) and poly(ethylene glycol) were examined as polymeric diluents, and the morphology of the resultant molecularly imprinted polymers was investigated by scanning electron microscopy. Among the examined polymeric diluents, styrene was shown to be favorable for obtaining monodispersed spherical polymer with high retention ability for atrazine.

Keywords:

• Atrazine
• Liquid chromatography
• Molecular imprinting
• Polymer beads
• Polymeric diluent

Acknowledgments

This work was financially supported by a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C) (2010–2012) from MEXT, Japan, and by the Hirao Taro Foundation of the Konan University Association for Academic Research.