Bench to plant: Industrial scale synthesis an forming of aluminium fumarate Rebecca Ryder, Jack Turner, Venus So, Scott Priest, Paul Kirkman Promethean Particles Ltd., UK To date, metal-organic framework (MOF) technology has struggled to span the gap from academic interest to large-scale industrial usage; a fact highlighted by the vast decrease in the number of MOF compositions synthesised to those commercially available (<1%). [1] While many MOFs require harsh reaction conditions and utilize high-cost raw materials, aluminium fumarate (AlFu) offers a relatively straightforward route to scale. Specifically, fumaric acid is one of the most inexpensive and benign linkers available, additionally, the material can be synthesized in high yield under mild conditions using water as the only solvent. [2] In terms of applications, AlFu is mostly effective for water purification (including phosphate removal and desalination) and water capture. [3] AlFu is an increasingly popular choice of MOF in such applications due to its high stability and low toxicity. In terms of production, AlFu lends itself to a continuous production process due to rapid formation kinetics. A continuous production method, when compared to batch processes, offers a number of advantages for large scale manufacture of MOF materials including excellent control of process conditions and reagent mixing. Using proprietary counter-current continuous flow reactor systemsPromethean has successfully demonstrated hydrothermal synthesis of high quality AlFu with excellent yield. [4] The scale of synthesis has since been increased by 30,000X from initial lab scale for “proof of concept” (~1 g/hr), to pilot (~1 kg/hr), and then to production scale (~30 kg/hr), without compromising crystallinity, phase purity or specific surface area. For most industrial applications, the remaining question after being able to reliably produce large quantities of AlFu is what is the optimal form? Depending on the specific application, there are many options for the optimal form; for example, powder, tablets, pellets or more complex composite materials. By forming AlFu into tablets or pellets, it improves handling safety as it removes the need to handle dry powders at scale. It also reduces the likelihood of MOF loss into gas streams and pressure drop during gas separation processes. Promethean has demonstrated AlFu pellet formation via a scalable extrusion process, without a significant loss in specific surface area, (see Figure below). This poster will discuss Promethean’s manufacture of AlFu pellets – with desirable properties – at scale, and investigate the use of cellulosic and polymeric binders to influence mechanical stability.
References 1. C. W. Jones, ‘Metal–Organic Frameworks and Covalent Organic Frameworks: Emerging Advances and Applications’, JACS Au, vol. 2, no. 7, pp. 1504–1505, 2022 2. E. Moumen, L. Bazzi, and S. El Hankari, ‘Aluminum-fumarate based MOF: A promising environmentally friendly adsorbent for the removal of phosphate’, Process Safety and Environmental Protection, vol. 160, pp. 502–512, 2022 3. E. Elsayed, R. Al-Dadah, S. Mahmoud, P. Anderson, and A. Elsayed, ‘Experimental testing of aluminium fumarate MOF for adsorption desalination’, 2019 4. M. Gimeno-Fabra et al., ‘Instant MOFs: Continuous synthesis of metal–organic frameworks by rapid solvent mixing’, Chemical Communications, vol. 48, no. 86, pp. 10642–10644, Oct. 2012
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