From ore to MOF: A case of MIL-100(Fe) production from iron ore concentrates

Within this work, iron ore concentrates instead of elemental iron Fe0 and iron salts like Fe(NO3)3 and FeCl3 were selected as iron source to prepare MIL-100(Fe) (labeled as MIL-100(Fe)-ore). The corresponding synthesis cost is reduced to half of the MIL-100(Fe) produced from elemental iron and iron salts. As well, the unreacted iron ore concentrates can be easily separated from the as-prepared MIL-100(Fe)-ore by magnetic to facilitate the purification process, free of the strong acids to wash the residual iron. The as-obtained MIL-100(Fe)-ore with Langmuir surface area up to 2281.6 ​m2 ​g−1 displayed long-term chemical stability. Furthermore, the sorption capacity of MIL-100(Fe)-ore towards malachite green (MG) is up to 522.3 ​mg ​g−1 at 25 ​°C and initial pH ​= ​3.2, higher than that of MIL-100(Fe) yielded by conventional hydrothermal process. Finally, the production cost and life cycle assessment of MIL-100(Fe)-ore were compared with other traditional production procedures. The results revealed that our work greatly reduced the synthesis cost and enhanced the environmental sustainability.