Search

Porous materials with d3 electronic configuration open metal sites have been proved to be effective adsorbents for N2 capture and N2/O2 separation. However, the reported materials remain challenging to address the trade‐off between adsorption capacity and selectivity. Herein, we report a robust MOF, MIL‐102Cr, that features two binding sites, can synergistically afford strong interactions for N2 capture. The synergistic adsorption site exhibits a benchmark Qst of 45.0 kJ mol−1 for N2 among the Cr‐based MOFs, a record‐high volumetric N2 uptake (31.38 cm3 cm−3), and highest N2/O2 selectivity (13.11) at 298 K and 1.0 bar. Breakthrough experiments reveal that MIL‐102Cr can efficiently capture N2 from a 79/21 N2/O2 mixture, providing a record 99.99 % pure O2 productivity of 0.75 mmol g−1. In situ infrared spectroscopy and computational modelling studies revealed that a synergistic adsorption effect by open Cr(III) and fluorine sites was accountable for the strong interactions between the MOF and N2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Methane (CH4) enrichment and purification is of great significance for increasing the heating value of unconventional natural gas sources and curtailing its effect on global warming. For a long time, commercial adsorbents for CH4 separation have been hampered by low adsorption capacities, sub‐optimal adsorption selectivities, or slow diffusion rates, which have significantly restricted separation productivity. Herein, we report a facile and green seed‐passaging method to fabricate donut‐like macro–meso–micro hierarchical zeolite K‐Chabazite nanocrystal aggregates. This consecutive seed‐inducing method requires no organic template. By utilizing this unique nanocrystallization technique, the CH4 adsorption capacity, gas diffusion rate, and separation productivity of the resultant material are dramatically increased compared with those of commercially available adsorbents, thus setting a new benchmark in CH4/N2 separation. More importantly, production of this adsorbent can be easily scaled‐up to the order of 100 kg using readily available raw materials in this environmentally friendly synthetic route, enabling potential industrial implementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]