Efficient separation of 1,3‐butadiene from <scp>C4</scp> hydrocarbons by flexible metal–organic framework with gate‐opening effect
Lu Wang, Hongliang Huang, Hejin Zhu, Yanjiao Chang, Xiangyu Guo, Fan Yang, Chongli Zhong
Abstract
Abstract Efficient and economical separation of 1,3‐butadiene (C 4 H 6 ) from C 4 hydrocarbons is imperative yet challenging in industrial separation processes. Herein, a guest‐induced flexible Mn‐bpdc metal–organic framework (MOF) has been employed to separate C 4 H 6 from C 4 hydrocarbons, including n ‐butene ( n ‐C 4 H 8 ) , iso‐butene (iso‐C 4 H 8 ), n ‐butane ( n ‐C 4 H 10 ), and iso‐butane (iso‐C 4 H 10 ). Significantly, C 4 H 6 can instantaneously induce gate‐opening of Mn‐bpdc MOF at 0.13 bar and 298 K, thus significant amounts of C 4 H 6 can be adsorbed, while other C 4 hydrocarbons cannot induce the gate‐opening even at 1 bar. The uptake selectivities of Mn‐bpdc MOF for C 4 H 6 / n ‐C 4 H 8 and C 4 H 6 /iso‐C 4 H 8 are up to 40.0 and 45.0 at 298 K and 1 bar, respectively, both surpassing all the reported adsorbents. In addition, breakthrough experiments verify that C 4 H 6 / n ‐C 4 H 8 , C 4 H 6 /iso‐C 4 H 8 , C 4 H 6 / n ‐C 4 H 10 , C 4 H 6 /iso‐C 4 H 10 , C 4 H 6 / n ‐C 4 H 8 / n ‐C 4 H 10 , and C 4 H 6 /iso‐C 4 H 8 /iso‐C 4 H 10 mixtures can be efficiently separated. More importantly, Mn‐bpdc possesses excellent water stability and outstanding regeneration ability for C 4 H 6 separation, making it a new benchmark for C 4 H 6 purification.