High-performance hydrophobic MOFs for selective acetone capture under humid conditions

Grigoletto S, Karami K, Maye I, Padunnappattu A, Ravichandran S, Wahiduzzaman M, Vanduyfhuys L, Van Speybroeck V, Thommes M, Denayer JF, Stock N, Maurin G (2025)

Publication Type: Journal article

Publication year: 2025

Journal

Journal of Materials Chemistry A Royal Society of Chemistry

DOI: 10.1039/d5ta03712c

Abstract

Capturing acetone, a major indoor air pollutant, under humid conditions is a longstanding challenge in materials science. The key obstacle lies in finding porous adsorbents that simultaneously exhibit strong affinity for acetone and intrinsic hydrophobicity, a rare and elusive pairing. Leveraging the structural and chemical versatility of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), we first explored a diverse set of MOFs using force field Monte Carlo and density-functional theory calculations. This computational strategy identified CAU-11(Al) as a top performer: a hydrophobic, small pore MOF that enables both high acetone affinity and uptake at trace concentrations with excellent selectivity over water. Experimental validation through gas-phase pulse chromatography, adsorption measurements, and breakthrough studies confirmed the outstanding performance of this sorbent under competitive acetone/water conditions. These results position CAU-11(Al) as a promising material for real-world acetone capture in humid indoor environments.

Authors with CRIS profile

Iago Maye Lehrstuhl für Thermische Verfahrenstechnik (TVT) Matthias Thommes Lehrstuhl für Thermische Verfahrenstechnik (TVT)

Involved external institutions

University of Montpellier / Université Montpellier FR France (FR) Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel DE Germany (DE) Universiteit Gent (UGent) / Ghent University BE Belgium (BE) Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) BE Belgium (BE)

How to cite

APA:

Grigoletto, S., Karami, K., Maye, I., Padunnappattu, A., Ravichandran, S., Wahiduzzaman, M.,... Maurin, G. (2025). High-performance hydrophobic MOFs for selective acetone capture under humid conditions. Journal of Materials Chemistry A. https://doi.org/10.1039/d5ta03712c

MLA:

Grigoletto, Sabrina, et al. "High-performance hydrophobic MOFs for selective acetone capture under humid conditions." Journal of Materials Chemistry A (2025).

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