Fe-MOF with U-Shaped Channels for C 2 H 2 /CO 2 and C 2 H 2 /C 2 H 4 Separation.

The development of high-performance adsorbents is critical for the low-energy separation of acetylene. Herein, we synthesized an Fe-MOF (MOF, metal-organic framework) with U-shaped channels. The adsorption isotherms of C 2 H 2 , C 2 H 4 , and CO 2 show that the adsorption capacity of acetylene is significantly larger than that of the other two gases. Meanwhile, the actual separation performance was verified by breakthrough experiments, indicating the potential to separate C 2 H 2 /CO 2 and C 2 H 2 /C 2 H 4 mixtures at normal temperatures. Grand Canonical Monte Carlo (GCMC) simulation demonstrates that the framework with U-shaped channels interacts more strongly with C 2 H 2 than with C 2 H 4 and CO 2 . The high C 2 H 2 uptake and low adsorption enthalpy highlight Fe-MOF as a promising candidate for C 2 H 2 /CO 2 separation with a low regeneration energy.