Dispersing aminopolycarboxylate ionic liquids in mesoporous organic polymer for highly efficient and improved carbon capture from dilute source

Abstract

Aminopolycarboxylate ILs (APC-ILs)—a kind of anion-grafted amine-functionalized ILs enabling 1:2 stoichiometry of reaction with CO2—were dispersed in mesoporous organic polymer to achieve a new class of adsorbents. The mesoporous organic polymer selected herein is polydivinylbenzene (PDVB) that can be facilely synthesized by a solvothermal route without any templates. The prepared APC-IL@PDVB samples were then systematically characterized and investigated for carbon capture performance. It is found that APC-IL@PDVB samples can efficiently adsorb CO2 from dilute source, with the highest CO2 capacity of 1.65 mmol/g and IL utilization ratio of 1.53 mol/mol at 30 ℃ for 10 vol% of CO2 balanced in N2. The CO2 capacities of APC-IL@PDVB samples surpass the values of most other solid-dispersed ILs, and the IL utilization ratios surpass the values of most non-dispersed ILs. The adsorption of CO2 by APC-IL@PDVB samples is also highly selective towards N2, and reversible throughout consecutive adsorption-desorption cycles. Therefore, dispersing APC-ILs in PDVB is an effective approach to obtain adsorbents with high efficiency and improved performance for carbon capture from dilute source.