Effects of structures of lower aliphatic alcohols and concentrations on CO2 chemical absorption and desorption reactions in various alcohol solutions of 1,8-diazabicyclo[5.4.0]undec-7-ene

Abstract

Alcohol solutions of 1,8-diazabicyclo[5.4.0]undec-7-ene (DBU) have received considerable interest as chemical absorbers of CO2 and switchable solvents because of their reversible reaction with CO2 and the polarity change triggered by CO2 absorption/desorption. However, there have been only a few systematic studies on the CO2 absorption and desorption behaviors of DBU–alcohol solutions. In this study, we determined the solubility of CO2 in binary solutions of DBU and various lower aliphatic alcohols at different temperatures. Except for the 2-methyl-2-propanol solution, which showed very low reactivity with CO2, all the DBU–alcohol solutions exhibited almost the same solubilities of CO2 at 298.2 K, independent of the alkyl groups present on the alcohols. However, their solubilities varied with DBU concentration. Moreover, we examined the amounts of CO2 recovery from the CO2-saturated solutions at high temperatures up to 393.2 K or the boiling points. The amount of CO2 per mole of DBU desorbed by heating was markedly influenced by both the alkyl group on the alcohols and the DBU concentration, indicating that at the studied concentrations, the temperature dependence of CO2 solubilities is strongly affected by the type of alcohol. To clarify this unique desorption behavior, we measured the 1H, 13C, and 15N nuclear magnetic resonance spectra of the DBU–alcohol solutions with and without CO2 at 298.2 K. In the absence of CO2, the nitrogen atoms at the 8-position of the DBU molecules strongly interact with the hydroxyl hydrogen atoms of the alcohol molecules via hydrogen bonding. As the DBU–alcohol solutions were saturated with CO2, the formation of protonated DBU ([DBUH]+) and alcohol-CO2 adduct (alkyl carbonate, [ROCO2]–) was confirmed. [DBUH]+ is stabilized by the solvation of free alcohol molecules, and the reverse reaction of [DBUH]+ with [ROCO2]– for CO2 release is hindered. Our findings are beneficial for designing and tuning DBU–alcohol systems for CO2 separation.