In this talk, I will focus on the synthesis of novel nanoporous materials (MOF, mesoporous and macroporous materials) for solving energy issues of chemical engineering nowadays: Membrane separation and Biomass conversion. In the application of membrane separation, we will design and synthesize microporous nanoparticles (i.e., metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) and zeolitic imidazole frameworks (ZIFs)) with controllable particle size and functionality. The advantage of our new approach is the synthetic process will be conducted in aqueous solution so that the synthesized MOFs nanoparticles can be homogeneously mixed in organic polymer solution to prepare mixed matrix membranes (MMMs). The fabricated MMMs will be used in the pervaporation of the mixture of water/ethanol for enhanced selectivity and flux. In the application of biomass conversion, we will continue the biomass experiments developed in our group (i.e., cellulose-to-5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) conversion). In particular, we will focus on the production of dimethylfuran (DMF) and furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA) from HMF by using our newly synthesized nanoporous-based solid catalysts.

Functional nanoporous materials for lignocellulosic biomass conversion and chemical engineering applications

2019 Spring National Meeting

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