Incorporation of Ligand Charge and Metal Oxidation State Considerations into the Computational Solvent Removal and Activation of Experimental Crystal Structures Preceding Molecular Simulation.

Efficient computational screenings are integral to materials discovery in highly sought-after gas adsorption and storage applications, such as CO capture. Preprocessing techniques have been developed to render experimental crystal structures suitable for molecular simulations by mimicking experimental activation protocols, particularly residual solvent removal. Current accounts examining these preprocessed materials databases indicate the presence of assorted structural errors introduced by solvent removal and preprocessing, including improper elimination of charge-balancing ions and ligands.

MEPO-ML: a robust graph attention network model for rapid generation of partial atomic charges in metal-organic frameworks.

Accurate computation of the gas adsorption properties of MOFs is usually bottlenecked by the DFT calculations required to generate partial atomic charges. Therefore, large virtual screenings of MOFs often use the QEq method which is rapid, but of limited accuracy. Recently, machine learning (ML) models have been trained to generate charges in much better agreement with DFT-derived charges compared to the QEq models.

Hydrogen Adsorption in Ultramicroporous Metal-Organic Frameworks Featuring Silent Open Metal Sites.

In this study, we utilized an ultramicroporous metal-organic framework (MOF) named [Ni(pzdc)(ade)(HO)]·2.18HO (where Hpzdc represents pyrazole-3,5-dicarboxylic acid and ade represents adenine) for hydrogen (H) adsorption. Upon activation, [Ni(pzdc)(ade)] was obtained, and in situ carbon monoxide loading by transmission infrared spectroscopy revealed the generation of open Ni(II) sites.

The Challenge of Water Competition in Physical Adsorption of CO by Porous Solids for Carbon Capture Applications - A Short Perspective.

With ever-increasing efforts to design sorbent materials to capture carbon dioxide from flue gas and air, this perspective article is provided based on nearly a decade of collaboration across science, engineering, and industry partners. A key point learned is that a holistic view of the carbon capture problem is critical. While researchers can be inclined to value their own fields and associated metrics, often, key parameters are those that enable synergy between materials and processes.

Molecular dynamics simulations of interfacial structure, dynamics, and interfacial tension of tetrabutylammonium bromide aqueous solution in the presence of methane and carbon dioxide.

The interfacial behavior of tetrabutylammonium bromide (TBAB) aqueous solutions in the absence of gas and the presence of methane and carbon dioxide gases is studied by molecular dynamics simulations. The aqueous TBAB phase, at concentrations similar to the solid semiclathrate hydrate (1:38 mol ratio), has a smaller interfacial tension and an increase in the gas molecules adsorbed at the interface compared to that in pure water. Both these factors may contribute to facilitating the uptake of the gases into the solid phase during the process of semiclathrate hydrate formation.

The HEALED SBU Library of Chemically Realistic Building Blocks for Construction of Hypothetical Metal-Organic Frameworks.

Advancements in hypothetical metal-organic framework (hMOF) databases and construction tools have resulted in a rapidly expanding chemical design space for nanoporous materials. The bulk of these hypothetical structures are constructed using structural building units (SBUs) derived from experimental MOF structures, often collected from the CoRE-MOF database. Recent investigations into the state of these deposited experimental structures' chemical accuracy identified an array of common structural errors, including omitted protons, missing counterions, and disordered structures.

A scalable metal-organic framework as a durable physisorbent for carbon dioxide capture.

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) as solid sorbents for carbon dioxide (CO) capture face the challenge of merging efficient capture with economical regeneration in a durable, scalable material. Zinc-based Calgary Framework 20 (CALF-20) physisorbs CO with high capacity but is also selective over water. Competitive separations on structured CALF-20 show not just preferential CO physisorption below 40% relative humidity but also suppression of water sorption by CO, which was corroborated by computational modeling.

Molecular dynamics simulations of interfacial properties of the CO-water and CO-CH-water systems.

Molecular dynamics simulations were performed to study the interfacial behavior of the pure carbon dioxide-water system and a binary 40:60 mol. % gas mixture of (carbon dioxide + methane)-water at the temperatures of 275.15 K and 298.

An Ultra-Microporous Metal-Organic Framework with Exceptional Xe Capacity.

Molecular confinement plays a significant effect on trapped gas and solvent molecules. A fundamental understanding of gas adsorption within the porous confinement provides information necessary to design a material with improved selectivity. In this regard, metal-organic framework (MOF) adsorbents are ideal candidate materials to study confinement effects for weakly interacting gas molecules, such as noble gases.

Prediction of MOF Performance in Vacuum Swing Adsorption Systems for Postcombustion CO Capture Based on Integrated Molecular Simulations, Process Optimizations, and Machine Learning Models.

Postcombustion CO capture and storage (CCS) is a key technological approach to reducing greenhouse gas emission while we transition to carbon-free energy production. However, current solvent-based CO capture processes are considered too energetically expensive for widespread deployment. Vacuum swing adsorption (VSA) is a low-energy CCS that has the potential for industrial implementation if the right sorbents can be found.

Data-driven design of metal-organic frameworks for wet flue gas CO capture.

Limiting the increase of CO in the atmosphere is one of the largest challenges of our generation. Because carbon capture and storage is one of the few viable technologies that can mitigate current CO emissions, much effort is focused on developing solid adsorbents that can efficiently capture CO from flue gases emitted from anthropogenic sources. One class of materials that has attracted considerable interest in this context is metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), in which the careful combination of organic ligands with metal-ion nodes can, in principle, give rise to innumerable structurally and chemically distinct nanoporous MOFs.

Interfacial properties of hydrocarbon/water systems predicted by molecular dynamic simulations.

The presence of small hydrocarbons is known to reduce the interfacial tension of the gas-water interface, and this phenomenon can affect the formation of the clathrate hydrates of these gases. In this work, the interfacial behavior of the pure methane-, ethane-, and propane-water, and the ternary 90:7:3 mol. % gas mixture of (methane + ethane + propane)-water were studied with molecular dynamics simulations.

Design Strategy for the Controlled Generation of Cationic Frameworks and Ensuing Anion-Exchange Capabilities.

Cationic frameworks are an emerging class of exceptional solid adsorbents capable of encapsulating highly toxic and persistent anionic pollutants. The controlled generation of cationic frameworks, however, lags behind the abundant design strategies devised to control the structures and topologies of neutral frameworks. In this regard, we report a rational approach that allows the conversion of the synthetic approach toward constructing a neutral framework into one allowing for the synthesis of a cationic one without incurring any changes to the overall topology or the selected metal ion.

3D porous metal-organic framework for selective adsorption of methane over dinitrogen under ambient pressure.

We report a highly porous 3D metal-organic framework (MOF) that shows potential for coal mine methane (CMM) capture.

Bond Type Restricted Property Weighted Radial Distribution Functions for Accurate Machine Learning Prediction of Atomization Energies.

Understanding the performance of machine learning algorithms is essential for designing more accurate and efficient statistical models. It is not always possible to unravel the reasoning of neural networks. Here, we propose a method for calculating machine learning kernels in closed and analytic form by combining atomic property weighted radial distribution function (AP-RDF) descriptor with a Gaussian kernel.

The utility of polarization modulation infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (PM-IRRAS) in surface and in situ studies: new data processing and presentation approach.

Infrared spectroscopy is a powerful non-destructive technique for the identification and quantification of organic molecules widely used in scientific studies. For many years, efforts have been made to adopt this technique for the in situ monitoring of reactions. From these efforts, polarization modulation infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (PM-IRRAS) was developed three decades ago.

The anomalous halogen bonding interactions between chlorine and bromine with water in clathrate hydrates.

Clathrate hydrate phases of Cl and Br guest molecules have been known for about 200 years. The crystal structure of these phases was recently re-determined with high accuracy by single crystal X-ray diffraction. In these structures, the water oxygen-halogen atom distances are determined to be shorter than the sum of the van der Waals radii, which indicates the action of some type of non-covalent interaction between the dihalogens and water molecules.

Stepwise crystallographic visualization of dynamic guest binding in a nanoporous framework.

Binding sites are at the heart of all host-guest systems, whether biological or chemical. When considering binding sites that form covalent bonds with the guest, we generally envision a single, highly specific binding motif. Through single-crystal X-ray crystallography, the dynamic binding of a guest that displays a variety of covalent binding motifs in a single site of adsorption is directly observed for the first time.

A New Split Charge Equilibration Model and REPEAT Electrostatic Potential Fitted Charges for Periodic Frameworks with a Net Charge.

Periodic frameworks that possess a net charge, such as zeolites, are an important class of materials in wide use. For guest-host interactions to be simulated in these materials, partial atomic charges are often used. In this work, we investigate two methods for the generation of partial atomic charges in periodic systems having a net framework charge.

Materials design by evolutionary optimization of functional groups in metal-organic frameworks.

A genetic algorithm that efficiently optimizes a desired physical or functional property in metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) by evolving the functional groups within the pores has been developed. The approach has been used to optimize the CO uptake capacity of 141 experimentally characterized MOFs under conditions relevant for postcombustion CO capture. A total search space of 1.

Ultralow Parasitic Energy for Postcombustion CO Capture Realized in a Nickel Isonicotinate Metal-Organic Framework with Excellent Moisture Stability.

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have attracted significant attention as solid sorbents in gas separation processes for low-energy postcombustion CO capture. The parasitic energy (PE) has been put forward as a holistic parameter that measures how energy efficient (and therefore cost-effective) the CO capture process will be using the material. In this work, we present a nickel isonicotinate based ultramicroporous MOF, 1 [Ni-(4PyC)·DMF], that has the lowest PE for postcombustion CO capture reported to date.

QSAR Accelerated Discovery of Potent Ice Recrystallization Inhibitors.

Ice recrystallization is the main contributor to cell damage and death during the cryopreservation of cells and tissues. Over the past five years, many small carbohydrate-based molecules were identified as ice recrystallization inhibitors and several were shown to reduce cryoinjury during the cryopreservation of red blood cells (RBCs) and hematopoietic stems cells (HSCs). Unfortunately, clear structure-activity relationships have not been identified impeding the rational design of future compounds possessing ice recrystallization inhibition (IRI) activity.

Capturing Re(i) in an neutral N,N,N pincer Scaffold and resulting enhanced absorption of visible light.

The organometallic and coordination chemistry of rhenium(i) has been largely restricted to bidentate α-diimine ligation and facial tricarbonyl coordination geometries. The thermal transformation of bidentate bis(imino)pyridine and bidentate terpyridine complexes at 200-240 °C under nitrogen led to a family of Re(i) pincer complexes [κ(3)-2,6-{ArN[double bond, length as m-dash]CMe}2(NC5H3)]Re(CO)2X (Ar[double bond, length as m-dash]C6H5, Me2C6H3, (i)Pr2C6H3; X = Cl, Br) and (κ(3)-terpy)Re(CO)2X (X = Cl, Br). The synthesis, single crystal X-ray structural and spectroscopic characterization of these eight species documents their Re coordination geometries and demonstrates the accessibility of such compounds.

Intercalation of Coordinatively Unsaturated Fe(III) Ion within Interpenetrated Metal-Organic Framework MOF-5.

Coordinatively unsaturated Fe(III) metal sites were successfully incorporated into the iconic MOF-5 framework. This new structure, Fe(III) -iMOF-5, is the first example of an interpenetrated MOF linked through intercalated metal ions. Structural characterization was performed with single-crystal and powder XRD, followed by extensive analysis by spectroscopic methods and solid-state NMR, which reveals the paramagnetic ion through its interaction with the framework.

Molecular simulations and density functional theory calculations of bromine in clathrate hydrate phases.

Bromine forms a tetragonal clathrate hydrate structure (TS-I) very rarely observed in clathrate hydrates of other guest substances. The detailed structure, energetics, and dynamics of Br2 and Cl2 in TS-I and cubic structure I (CS-I) clathrate hydrates are studied in this work using molecular dynamics and quantum chemical calculations. X-ray diffraction studies show that the halogen-water-oxygen distances in the cages of these structures are shorter than the sum of the van der Waals radii of halogen and oxygen atoms.