Zero-energy-consumption temperature swing system for ethane adsorption and release

Temperature swing adsorption (TSA) technology plays an important role in industrial gas capture, but the temperature swing procedure consumes a huge amount of energy, which takes over 80% of the total energy consumed. In this work, we report a C₂H₆-selective temperature swing system completely driven by solar irradiation. For adsorption, the adsorbent is placed under a layer of poly(vinylidenefluoride-co-hexafluoropropene) [P(VdF-HFP)_HP] which can reflect sunlight and radiate heat to outer space, thus efficiently decreasing adsorption temperature under light irradiation. While desorption, the adsorbent is placed above P(VdF-HFP)_HP and directly heated by sunlight, leading to the liberation of C₂H₆ adsorbed. The whole temperature-swing process do not need any energy input other than solar energy. The metal–organic framework (MOF), Ni(bdc)(ted)_0.5, is selected as the adsorbent because of its high working capacity and easy regeneration. This zero-energy-consumption temperature swing system shows stable performance in the repeated C₂H₆ adsorption–desorption tests for 5 months. The present work sheds light on the development of energy-efficient TSA technologies for the capture of light hydrocarbons.