Purification of Propylene and Ethylene by a Robust Metal–Organic Framework Mediated by Host–Guest Interactions

From Wiley via Jisc Publications RouterHistory: received 2021-03-19, pub-electronic 2021-06-07Article version: VoRPublication status: PublishedFunder: Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council; Id: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100000266; Grant(s): EP/I011870, EP/R00661X/1, EP/S019367/1, EP/P025021/1, EP/P025498/1Funder: European Research Council; Id: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100000781; Grant(s): 742401Abstract: Industrial purification of propylene and ethylene requires cryogenic distillation and selective hydrogenation over palladium catalysts to remove propane, ethane and/or trace amounts of acetylene. Here, we report the excellent separation of equimolar mixtures of propylene/propane and ethylene/ethane, and of a 1/100 mixture of acetylene/ethylene by a highly robust microporous material, MFM‐520, under dynamic conditions. In situ synchrotron single crystal X‐ray diffraction, inelastic neutron scattering and analysis of adsorption thermodynamic parameters reveal that a series of synergistic host–guest interactions involving hydrogen bonding and π⋅⋅⋅π stacking interactions underpin the cooperative binding of alkenes within the pore. Notably, the optimal pore geometry of the material enables selective accommodation of acetylene. The practical potential of this porous material has been demonstrated by fabricating mixed‐matrix membranes comprising MFM‐520, Matrimid and PIM‐1, and these exhibit not only a high permeability for propylene (≈1984 Barrer), but also a separation factor of 7.8 for an equimolar mixture of propylene/propane at 298 K

Gold Supported on Graphene Oxide: An Active and Selective Catalyst for Phenylacetylene Hydrogenations at Low Temperatures

A constraint to industrial implementation of gold-catalyzed alkyne hydrogenation is that the catalytic activity was always inferior to those of other noble metals. In this work, gold was supported on graphene oxide (Au/GO) and used in a hydrogenation application. A 99% selectivity toward styrene with a 99% conversion in the hydrogenation of phenylacetylene was obtained at 60 °C, which is 100 to 200 °C lower than optimal temperatures in most previous reports on Au catalysts. A series of gold- and palladium-based reference catalysts were tested under the same conditions for phenylacetylene hydrogenation, and the performance of Au/GO was substantiated by studying the role of functionalized GO in governing the geometrical structure and thermal stability of supported Au nanoparticles under reaction conditions