Gas separations are critical throughout industrial processes: The primary parameter by which sorbents are assessed is their selectivity for a specific gas from the mixture from which it is to be separated.. We previously demonstrated with single gas adsorption measurements that the metal formates (M=Co, Ni) should be good candidates for the separation of krypton and xenon. Here, we analyze the metal (M=Mg, Mn, Fe, Ni, Co, Zn) formate family of metal-organic frameworks for their ability to separate mixtures of noble gases by means of multi-component gas mixture grand canonical monte carlo simulations.  Simulations are compared to supporting single gas adsorption measurements that have been analyzed with ideal adsorbed solution theory. We find that the metal formates are more selective than other compounds in the literature for the heavier noble gas in the mixture, and that formates with smaller pores tend to be more selective. The temperature and loading dependence of the selectivity are explored to find optimal conditions for pressure swing adsorption applications of the metal formates. The selectivities are highest at low loadings and colder temperatures, but appear practical over a wide range of conditions. The temperature and composition of the heat of adsoprtion of the noble gases into the formates is analyzed in order to show that gas mixture adsorption data needs to be evaluated for accurately estimating PSA.

Tuning noble gas separations in metal formates with temperature dependent selectivities

247th National Meeting (2014)

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