ABSTRACT
Powder, agglomerates, and tablets of the microporous zirconium(IV) terephthalate metal-organic framework UiO-66 were evaluated for the selective adsorption and separation of xylene isomers in the liquid phase using n-heptane as the eluent. Pulse experiments, performed at 313 K in the presence of n-heptane, revealed the o-xylene preference of this material, which was further confirmed by binary and multicomponent breakthrough experiments in the presence of m- and p-xylene, resulting in selectivities at 313 K of 1.8 and 2.4 with regards to m-xylene and p-xylene, respectively. Additionally, because p-xylene is the less retained isomer, UiO-66 presents a selectivity pattern that is reverse of that of the xylenes' molecular dimension with respect to shape selectivity. The shaping of the material as tablets did not significantly change its selectivity toward the o-xylene isomer or toward p-xylene, which was the less retained isomer, despite a loss in capacity. Finally, the selectivity behavior of UiO-66 in the liquid n-heptane phase makes it a suitable material for o-xylene separation in the extract (heavy product) or p-xylene separation in the raffinate (light product) by simulated moving bed technology.
Subject(s)
Organometallic Compounds/chemistry , Phthalic Acids/chemistry , Xylenes/chemistry , Zirconium/chemistry , Adsorption , Isomerism , Models, Molecular , Molecular Conformation , TemperatureABSTRACT
The potential of the porous crystalline titanium dicarboxylate MIL-125(Ti) in powder form was studied for the separation in liquid phase of xylene isomers and ethylbenzene (MIL stands for Materials from Institut Lavoisier). We report here a detailed experimental study consisting of binary and multi-component adsorption equilibrium of xylene isomers in MIL-125(Ti) powder at low (≤0.8 M) and bulk (≥0.8 M) concentrations. A series of multi-component breakthrough experiments was first performed using n-heptane as the eluent at 313 K, and the obtained selectivities were compared, followed by binary breakthrough experiments to determine the adsorption isotherms at 313 K, using n-heptane as the eluent. MIL-125(Ti) is a para-selective material suitable at low concentrations to separate p-xylene from the other xylene isomers. Pulse experiments indicate a separation factor of 1.3 for p-xylene over o-xylene and m-xylene, while breakthrough experiments using a diluted ternary mixture lead to selectivity values of 1.5 and 1.6 for p-xylene over m-xylene and o-xylene, respectively. Introduction of ethylbenzene in the mixture results however in a decrease of the selectivity.
