Selective removal of cationic micro-pollutants using disulfide-linked network structures

M. S. Atas, S. Dursun, H. Akyildiz, M. Citir, C. T. Yavuz*, M. S. Yavuz*
RSC Adv., 7, 25969-25977, (2017). Open Access
DOI: 10.1039/C7RA04775D

Micropollutants are found in all water sources, even after thorough treatments that include membrane filtration. New ones emerge as complex molecules are continuously produced and discarded after used. Treatment methods and sorbent designs are mainly based on non-specific interactions and, therefore, have been elusive. Here, we developed swellable covalent organic polymers (COP) with great affinity towards micropollutants, such as textile industry dyes. Surprisingly, only cationic dyes in aqueous solution were selectively and completely removed. Studies of the COPs surfaces led to a gating capture, where negatively charged layer attracts cationic dyes and moves them inside the swollen gel through diffusive and hydrophobic interaction of the hydrocarbon fragments. Despite its larger molecular size, crystal violet has been taken the most, 13.4 mg g−1, surpassing all competing sorbents. The maximum adsorption capacity increased from 12.4 to 14.6 mg and from 8.9 to 11.4 mg when the temperature of dye solution was increased from 20 to 70 °C. The results indicated that disulfide-linked COPs are attractive candidates for selectively eliminating cationic dyes from industrial wastewater due to exceptional swelling behaviour, low-cost and easy synthesis.

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Charge-specific size-dependent separation of water-soluble organic molecules by fluorinated nanoporous networks

J. Byun, H. A. Patel, D. Thirion, C. T. Yavuz*
Nature Commun., 7, 13377, (2016). OpenAccess
DOI: 10.1038/ncomms13377. ReadCube: rdcu.be/mw1d.
Highlighted in Chemical & Engineering News by Stephen K. Ritter

Molecular architecture in nanoscale spaces can lead to selective chemical interactions and separation of species with similar sizes and functionality. Substrate specific sorbent chemistry is well known through highly crystalline ordered structures such as zeolites, metal organic frameworks and widely available nanoporous carbons. Size and charge-dependent separation of aqueous molecular contaminants, on the contrary, have not been adequately developed. Here we report a charge-specific size-dependent separation of water-soluble molecules through an ultra-microporous polymeric network that features fluorines as the predominant surface functional groups. Treatment of similarly sized organic molecules with and without charges shows that fluorine interacts with charges favourably. Control experiments using similarly constructed frameworks with or without fluorines verify the fluorine-cation interactions. Lack of a σ-hole for fluorine atoms is suggested to be responsible for this distinct property, and future applications of this discovery, such as desalination and mixed matrix membranes, may be expected to follow.

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Robust C–C bonded porous networks with chemically designed functionalities for improved CO2 capture from flue gas

D. Thirion, J. S. Lee, E. Ozdemir, C. T. Yavuz*
Beilstein J. Org. Chem., 12, 2274-2279, (2016). OpenAccess
Invited Paper for the thematic issue on "Organic Porous Materials". DOI: 10.3762/bjoc.12.220.

Effective carbon dioxide (CO₂) capture requires solid, porous sorbents with chemically and thermally stable frameworks. Herein, we report two new carbon–carbon bonded porous networks that were synthesized through metal-free Knoevenagel nitrile–aldol condensation, namely the covalent organic polymer, COP-156 and 157. COP-156, due to high specific surface area (650 m2/g) and easily interchangeable nitrile groups, was modified post-synthetically into free amine- or amidoxime-containing networks. The modified COP-156-amine showed fast and increased CO₂ uptake under simulated moist flue gas conditions compared to the starting network and usual industrial CO₂ solvents, reaching up to 7.8 wt % uptake at 40 °C.

Keywords: C–C bond; CO₂ capture; microporous materials; porous polymers; postmodification

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Investigation of Ester- and Amide-Linker-Based Porous Organic Polymers for Carbon Dioxide Capture and Separation at Wide Temperatures and Pressures

R. Ullah§, M. Atilhan*, B. Anaya, S. Al-Muhtaseb, S. Aparicio, H. A. Patel§, D. Thirion, C. T. Yavuz*
ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces , 8 (32), 20772–20785, (2016). §: Equal contribution. DOI: 10.1021/acsami.6b05927.

Organic compounds, such as covalent organic framework, metal–organic frameworks, and covalent organic polymers have been under investigation to replace the well-known amine-based solvent sorption technology of CO2 and introduce the most efficient and economical material for CO2 capture and storage. Various organic polymers having different function groups have been under investigation both for low and high pressure CO2 capture. However, search for a promising material to overcome the issues of lower selectivity, less capturing capacity, lower mass transfer coefficient and instability in materials performance at high pressure and various temperatures is still ongoing process. Herein, we report synthesis of six covalent organic polymers (COPs) and their CO2, N2, and CH4 adsorption performances at low and high pressures up to 200 bar. All the presented COPs materials were characterized by using elemental analysis method, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and solid state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy techniques. Physical properties of the materials such as surface areas, pore volume and pore size were determined through BET analysis at 77 K. All the materials were tested for CO2, CH4, and N2 adsorption using state of the art equipment, magnetic suspension balance (MSB). Results indicated that, amide based material i.e. COP-33 has the largest pore volume of 0.2 cm2/g which can capture up to the maximum of 1.44 mmol/g CO2 at room temperature and at pressure of 10 bar. However, at higher pressure of 200 bar and 308 K ester-based compound, that is, COP-35 adsorb as large as 144 mmol/g, which is the largest gas capturing capacity of any COPs material obtained so far. Importantly, single gas measurement based selectivity of COP-33 was comparatively better than all other COPs materials at all condition. Nevertheless, overall performance of COP-35 rate of adsorption and heat of adsorption has indicated that this material can be considered for further exploration as efficient and cheaply available solid sorbent material for CO2 capture and separation.

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Nanoporous networks as effective stabilisation matrixes for nanoscale zero valent iron and groundwater pollutant removal

P. D. Mines, J. Byun, Y. Hwang, H. A. Patel, H. R. Andersen, C. T. Yavuz*
J. Mater. Chem. A, 4, 632-639 (2016). DOI: 10.1039/C5TA05025A.

Nanoscale zero-valent iron (nZVI), with its reductive potentials and wide availability, offers degradative remediation of environmental contaminants. Rapid aggregation and deactivation hinder its application in real-life conditions. Here, we show that by caging nZVI into the micropores of porous networks, in particular Covalent Organic Polymers (COPs), we dramatically improved its stability and adsorption capacity, while still maintaining its reactivity. We probed the nZVI activity by monitoring azo bond reduction and Fenton type degradation of the naphthol blue black azo dye. We found that depending on the wettability of the host COP, the adsorption kinetics and dye degradation capacities changed. The hierarchical porous network of the COP structures enhanced the transport by temporarily holding azo dyes giving enough time and contact for the nZVI to act to break them. nZVI was also found to be more protected from the oxidative conditions since access is gated by the pore openings of COPs.

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Unprecedented high-temperature CO2 selectivity in N2-phobic nanoporous covalent organic polymers

H. A. Patel, S. H. Je, J. Park, D. P. Chen, Y. Jung, C. T. Yavuz*, A. Coskun*
Nature Commun., 4, 1357, (2013). [DOI] [pdf] [WOS]

With CO₂/N₂ selectivity of 288, Azo-COP-2 (COP-69) holds the current world record
Highlighted in Chemical & Engineering News, Chemistry World, Yeni Asir (Turkish)(another link), Aktif Haber (Turkish), Zaman (Turkish), Bugun (Turkish), Enerji Enstitusu (Turkish), Daejeon Ilbo (Korean), MK News (Korean), Yonhap News (Korean) 

Post-combustion CO₂ capture and air separation are integral parts of the energy industry, although the available technologies remain inefficient, resulting in costly energy penalties. Here we report azo-bridged, nitrogen-rich, aromatic, water stable, nanoporous covalent organic polymers, which can be synthesized by catalyst-free direct coupling of aromatic nitro and amine moieties under basic conditions. Unlike other porous materials, azo-covalent organic polymers exhibit an unprecedented increase in CO₂/N₂ selectivity with increasing temperature, reaching the highest value (288 at 323 K) reported to date. Here we observe that azo groups reject N₂, thus making the framework N₂-phobic. Monte Carlo simulations suggest that the origin of the N₂ phobicity of the azo-group is the entropic loss of N₂ gas molecules upon binding, although the adsorption is enthalpically favourable. Any gas separations that require the efficient exclusion of N₂ gas would do well to employ azo units in the sorbent chemistry.

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