A sol–gel monolithic metal–organic framework with enhanced methane uptake

Journal article

A critical bottleneck for the use of natural gas as a transportation fuel has been the development of materials capable of storing it in a sufficiently compact form at ambient temperature. Here we report the synthesis of a porous monolithic metal-organic framework (MOF), which after successful packing and densification reaches 259 cm3 (STP) cm-3 capacity. This is the highest value reported to date for conformed shape porous solids, and represents a greater than 50% improvement over any previously reported experimental value. Nanoindentation tests on the monolithic MOF showed robust mechanical properties, with hardness at least 130% greater than that previously measured in its conventional MOF counterparts. Our findings represent a substantial step in the application of mechanically robust conformed and densified MOFs for high volumetric energy storage and other industrial applications.

Authors: Tian, T; Zeng, Z; Vulpe, D; Casco, ME; Divitini, G

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Peer reviewed
• Publisher: Springer Nature
• Journal: Nature Materials
• Volume: 17
• Pages: 174–179
• Publication date: 2017-12-11
• Acceptance date: 2017-11-02
• DOI: 10.1038/nmat5050
• ISSN: 1476-1122
• Pmid: 29251723
• Language: English