Potential photo-switching sorbents for CO2 capture-A review

Porous materials with photochromic units are currently under investigation as light allows for environmentally friendly and highly energy-efficient control for gas separation and storage, chemical sensing, and drug delivery. In the application of photo-switching materials to CO2 capture, researchers have tried to endow a diversity of porous materials such as metal-organic frameworks and porous organic polymers with photo-responsive units. This review highlights photochromic units and methods used for different types of photo-responsive adsorbents of CO2 and some examples of adsorbents with photo-switching properties. These sorbents are also promising for application to direct air capture of CO2. In particular, the cost of adsorbent regeneration could be reduced by using sorbents with light-induced regeneration. The key purpose of this review is to motivate more research into photo-switching sorbents for CO2 capture with the control of capture or release by simply switching the light on and off.

Automated summary

Porous materials with photochromic units are being investigated for their potential applications in gas separation and storage, chemical sensing, and drug delivery. This review focuses on the use of photo-switching materials for CO2 capture and highlights different types of photo-responsive adsorbents and their applications. The key purpose is to inspire more research into photo-switching sorbents for CO2 capture with the ability to control capture or release by simply switching the light on and off.