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Electrophoretic Crystallization of Ultrathin High-performance Metal-organic Framework Membranes
Published on: August 16, 2018
Pore Modulation by CF3-Decorated Pyridine Rings Enables Direct Ethylene Purification from C2 Hydrocarbons
Hualing Yang1, Mingxing Zhang1
1College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Nantong University, Nantong226019, P. R. China.
Abstract:
Direct purification of ethylene from C2 hydrocarbon mixtures remains challenging due to their similar physicochemical properties. Herein, we report NTUniv-65, a Cu2 paddlewheel-based metal-organic framework constructed from CF3-functionalized pyridine dicarboxylate ligands. The inward-oriented CF3-decorated pyridine rings regulate the pore aperture and local adsorption environment, inducing an unusual adsorption sequence of C2H2 > C2H6 > C2H4 through enhanced confinement and host-guest interactions. Experimental measurements and molecular simulations provide molecular-level insight into this selective adsorption behavior. NTUniv-65 exhibits separation of C2H2 and C2H6 from C2H4, enabling one-step purification of ethylene from a realistic C2H2/C2H6/C2H4 (1/9/90) mixture with an ethylene yield of 22.1 cm3 g-1. This work highlights pore modulation by functionalized ligands as an effective strategy for challenging hydrocarbon separations.
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