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Published on: May 12, 2023
Enhanced D2/H2 Separation in Isomorphic Copper-Based Metal-Organic Frameworks via Optimized Pore Architecture and
Yifei Xie1,2,3, Changxu Wang1,3,4, Kongzhao Su1,2
1State Key Laboratory of Structural Chemistry, Fujian Institute of Research on the Structure of Matter, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Fuzhou 350002, China.
Efficient hydrogen isotope separation is achieved using metal-organic frameworks with specific pore sizes and open metal sites (OMSs). PCN-61 demonstrates superior performance, highlighting the importance of pore architecture and OMS density for effective separation.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Chemical Engineering
- Separation Science
Background:
- Hydrogen isotope separation is challenging due to similar physicochemical properties.
- Porous materials with open metal sites (OMSs) show promise for isotope separation via quantum sieving.
Purpose of the Study:
- To systematically investigate Cu-based metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) for hydrogen isotope separation.
- To elucidate the roles of OMS density and pore architecture in separation performance.
Main Methods:
- Static adsorption measurements
- Thermodynamic analysis
- Dynamic breakthrough experiments
- Kinetic adsorption studies
Main Results:
- PCN-61 exhibited the best performance with a D2/H2/Ne separation time of 28.5 min g-1 and selectivity of 1.53 at 77 K.
- High density of accessible Cu2+ OMSs and sufficiently large pores are crucial for efficient dynamic separation.
- Structure-performance relationships were established for MOFs.
Conclusions:
- Cu-based MOFs with optimized pore architecture and OMS density are effective for hydrogen isotope separation.
- Findings provide guidelines for designing advanced porous materials for isotope separation.
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