Toward Automation-Guided Discovery of Ion-Active Polymers

Ion-active polymers are important materials for polymer electrolytes, ion-conducting soft materials, and electrochemical devices. However, their rational design remains difficult because ion loading, ionic conductivity, mechanical robustness, solubility, and phase behavior are strongly interdependent. Polymer systems based on one or two monomers often lack the chemical diversity needed to independently tune these coupled properties. Here, we propose an automation-guided strategy to explore high-dimensional polymer composition space. Multicomponent random copolymers are designed by combining monomers with distinct roles, including Li⁺ solvation, mechanical reinforcement, ionic-liquid compatibility, and interfacial stabilization. Automated liquid handling enables the rapid and reproducible preparation of ion-active polymer libraries. By linking automated synthesis with composition–property mapping, this work aims to identify non-intuitive polymer compositions that maximize ion loading while preserving ionic conductivity and mechanical integrity.