Quantum chemical calculations on the interaction between flavonol and functional monomers (methacrylic acid and 4-vinylpyridine) in molecularly imprinted polymers.

Quantum chemical calculations were performed to characterize the interaction of the flavonol molecule (FL) with methacrylic acid (MAA) and 4-vinylpyridine (4VPy) in the formation of imprinted polymers. The polarizable continuum model (PCM) was used to gain insight on the type of interaction between the reactant molecules under vacuum conditions and in the presence of different solvents. The effect of solvent on the pre-polymerization complex formation was evaluated through the stability energy, in which chloroform behaves as the best solvent for the synthesis of the imprinted polymers since it facilitates the reaction by lowering its degree of stabilization.