Energy saving solutions found in intrinsically porous materials

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Gas and liquid separation processes could be made more efficient and environmentally friendly by using intrinsically porous materials (IPMs), claim KAUST researchers. 

IPM materials, which can separate gases and liquids without using traditional high-temperature methods like heat-driven distillation, have been reviewed by Niveen Khashab and her team at KAUST in Saudi Arabia and their findings are published in Accounts of Chemical Research.

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"Through the review, we identified some IPMs with impressive performance," said Gengwu Zhang, a postdoc in Khashab's team. In a statement, he said IPMs could save 70 to 90 per cent of the energy costs of existing technologies used by chemical and petrochemical industries.

According to KAUST, a key advantage of IPMs over many other porous materials is their stability and ability to maintain their porous properties in the solid, liquid, gas or solution states. They can also be readily processed and modified when in solution, unlike many alternatives.

"They can be easily prepared on a large scale by using cheap starting materials," said Zhang, "Some of them are even commercially available products."

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