NANOMOF

Nanoporous Metal-Organic Frameworks for production

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 Obiettivo del progetto (Objective)

'The discovery of porous hybrid materials constructed from inorganic nodes and organic multifunctional linkers has established a new area of inorganic-organic hybrids (Metal-Organic Frameworks, MOFs) with extraordinary performance as compared to traditional porous solids such as zeolites and activated carbon. “NanoMOF” will focus beyond discovery and integrate MOFs into products with industrial impact within a strong cooperation of established MOF research institutions and industrial end users. The extraordinary properties of MOFs are expected to lead to a significant ecologic and economic impact in three areas: 1) Clean air, pollution, and toxicity risks of gaseous chemicals are environmental concerns with specific materials needs for selective adsorption in porous materials and advanced filter systems. Industrial feed gases and exhaust gases require a high purity to ensure durable processes and avoid pollution. The integration of MOFs into textile products will be used to develop air permeable personal protective clothing. For industrial and house-hold fuel cell reformer units novel MOF-based sulphur removal systems will be developed. 2) Safe delivery of highly toxic electronic grade gases (etching gases, dopants) is crucial for tool operation in semiconductor and solar industry. 3) Catalysis is an ecologically relevant and economically attractive technology. The replacement of liquid acids by solid state catalysts avoids the production of toxic liquid waste. MOF catalysts for (trans)esterification processes are designed for the conversion of fatty acids and triglycerides into valuable products for the oleochemical industry. The integration of MOFs into industrial relevant processes and products is supported by advanced modelling, simulation and process monitoring techniques. The project aims for a higher integration of MOFs into products with a high added value in order to propel Europe into an internationally leading position in the industrial use of MOFs.'

Introduzione (Teaser)

Novel hybrid inorganic-organic structures have opened a new area of discovery and shown great promise in a number of areas. EU funding helped researchers produce several demonstrator devices highlighting opportunities.

Descrizione progetto (Article)

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are a relatively new class of porous crystalline structures consisting of metal oxide clusters connected by organic ligands (the linkers). The resulting networks can have complex three-dimensional geometries. They create numerous micropores and thus exhibit the highest reported surface area of any material.

MOFs are excellent candidates for gas sorption and separation, catalysis (confined reaction structures) and sensing applications. A consortium of 17 beneficiaries from 10 European countries initiated the EU-funded 'Nanoporous metal-organic frameworks for production' (http://www.nanomof-project.eu/ (NANOMOF)) project to pursue industrial application of MOFs.

The focus was on gas purification, safe delivery of toxic electronics-grade gases and, finally, catalysis. MOFs were developed and evaluated for each application area resulting in selection of the best candidates for up-scaled production and new product demonstration.

For skin and respiratory system protection, scientists produced three-dimensionally loaded MOF-functionalised non-woven textiles. Combining traditional carbon-based adsorbents with the MOF materials was particularly effective. The team also experimented with various methods of production of the MOF-loaded textile air filters. Preliminary production of a few square metres showed promising performance. The team produced protective textile gloves, filter canisters for respiratory protection and gas purification canisters. Furthermore, a reactor demonstrator equipped with different MOF catalysts successfully produced monoglyceride.

Finally, researchers developed a number of technologies to produce MOFs for use as bulk material in the form of spherical granules of various sizes.

NANOMOF addressed all parts of the development chain to produce MOFs and products utilising them. Results will have important economic and ecological impact on pollution and toxicity protection, safe industrial delivery of toxic gases and catalysis.