Microwave assisted post-synthetic modification of IRMOF-3 and MIL-68-NH2 onto cotton for Fuel purification with computational explanation

Removal of phenol (as oxygenated compound) and indole (as nitrogen-based compound) from liquid fuel was currently studied using modified cotton fabric-based metal organic frameworks (MOFs). Functionalized cotton (PO@Cotton) was firstly synthesized by interaction with epichlorohydrin (ECH). Two MOFs based on Zn (IRMOF-3) and In (MIL-68-NH2) were applied to PO@Cottton via the microwave assisted post-synthetic modification technique. The obtained MOF@PO@Cotton was employed in removal of phenol and indole from nheptane. Langmuir maximum capacity (Qm) of phenol and indole was greatly enlarged from 144.2 and 183.7 mg/g for cotton to 403.5 - 416.5 mg/g and 480.7 - 529.7 mg/g for MOF@PO@Cotton, respectively. The adsorption amounts of MOF@PO@Cotton fabric were reduced by 18.8 - 20.0 % for phenol and 8.2 - 17.7 % for indole, after 5 reusing cycles. The adsorption mechanism of pollutants was suggested by using Monte Carlo simulation to be carried out through hydrogen bonding and pi-pi interactions.

Automated summary

In this study, the removal of phenol and indole from liquid fuel was achieved using modified cotton fabric-based metal organic frameworks. By combining functionalized cotton with MOFs, the adsorption capacity was greatly enhanced, and the fabric showed good reusability.