Separation of ethane and ethylene by a robust ethane-selective calcium-based metal–organic framework

Abstract

We report here the selective adsorption of ethane over ethylene by a robust microporous metal–organic framework (MOF) material, Ca(H₂tcpb) (H₄tcpb = 1,2,4,5-tetrakis(4-carboxyphenyl)-benzene). This compound exhibits higher adsorption capacity and stronger affinity toward ethane over ethylene. Multicomponent column breakthrough measurements confirm that it can selectively adsorb ethane from a binary mixture of ethane and ethylene.