Repairing Lattice Defects by an Orienting Strategy in a Porous Crystal: Boosting Inverse C2H6/C2H4 Separation

Jie Tang, Qian Wang, Hujun Zhang, Yuhang Huang, Jingui Duan, Wanqin Jin

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Defects are a common occurrence in various materials, making their repair a topic of widespread attention. However, the repair of atomic-scale lattice defects in porous crystals presents a substantial challenge. Herein, the repair of a linker-defective framework (NTU-70D) is presented through an orienting strategy to obtain a perfect framework (NTU-70P). Caused by steric hindrance from adjacent carboxylates of isonicotinic acid (INA), the lattice linker defect in NTU-70D is repaired by formic acid-assistant (pushed to the opposite direction by steric hindrance) installation of additional INAs in a defined direction, an unprecedented example in PCP chemistry. The resulting NTU-70P exhibits regular and smooth nano-channels that are adorned with more OINA sites, leading to a significant increase in C2H6 uptake (51.0 to 90.2 cm3 g−1) and C2H6/C2H4 selectivity (1.6 to 2.5), as evidenced by modeling calculations and in situ IR analysis. Furthermore, it demonstrates a notable ability to produce poly-grade C2H4 (with a record value of 46.4 mL g−1) from C2H6-containing mixtures. This work presents the first example of repaired porous crystals for boosted inverse C2H6/C2H4 separation, and the insights gained into the lattice repair offer avenues for the development of rich defective systems in practical applications.

Original languageEnglish
Article number2412508
JournalSmall
Volume21
Issue number13
DOIs
StatePublished - 2 Apr 2025

Keywords

  • defect repairing
  • ethylene/ethane separation
  • lattice linker defects
  • orienting strategy
  • porous coordination polymers

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