Amide-Functionalized In-MOF for Effective Hydrocarbon Separation and CO2 Catalytic Fixation

Energy saving and emission reduction have always been the goal of separation and catalysis pursued in industrial production. Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are leading porous crystal materials with unique advantages in these fields. Based on an amide-modified ligand 5-(ethyl oxamate)-isophthalic acid (H₂EtL), a new porous indium-organic framework (Me₂NH₂)_1.5[In_1.5L₂]·2DMF·2H₂O (1) was synthesized and structurally characterized. The unique porous environment gives it dual functional advantages in separation and catalysis. At room temperature, 1 possesses excellent adsorption capacities for C₂ hydrocarbons and CO₂, showing good separation behaviors for C₂ hydrocarbons/CO₂ on CH₄ and C₂H₂ on CO₂, which is conducive to efficient purification of CH₄ and C₂H₂ confirmed by the breakthrough experiment. Meanwhile, catalytic results indicate that 1 can be used as a good catalyst for effective fixation of CO₂ under mild conditions to form cyclic carbonates.