Flexible–Robust Metal–Organic Framework for Efficient Removal of Propyne from Propylene

The removal of trace amounts of propyne
from propylene is critical
for the production of polymer-grade propylene. We herein report the
first example of metal–organic frameworks of flexible–robust
nature for the efficient separation of propyne/propylene mixtures.
The strong binding affinity and suitable pore confinement for propyne
account for its high uptake capacity and selectivity, as evidenced
by neutron powder diffraction studies and density functional theory
calculations. The purity of the obtained propylene is over 99.9998%,
as demonstrated by experimental breakthrough curves for a 1/99 propyne/propylene
mixture.