We have the in-depth expertise and know-how to design a system solution with optimised monolithic metal-organic framework materials around a process tailored to your operating conditions.
materials platform
system design
OUR ADVANCED MATERIALS PLATFORM TECHNOLOGY
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OUR SYSTEM DESIGN TECHNOLOGY
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OUR ADVANCED MATERIALS PLATFORM TECHNOLOGY
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This means we can choose or even design MOFs to have very specific pore sizes, surface chemistries, and a wide range of other physical properties depending on what is needed. This versatility makes them ideal solutions to a very wide range of industrial challenges. By choosing a MOF with a high affinity for a certain molecule, we can extract it from a mixture without distillation, or store a gas at a fraction of the pressure that simple compression would need. The potential uses of this technology are extremely wide-ranging, from filtering trace amounts of an impurity to industrial separations; from pulling a vacuum near absolute zero to storing bulk gases for shipping.
MOFs were first discovered over three decades ago. Since then, the number of materials identified has climbed from a handful to over 100,000, and the academic field has rushed forwards at an ever-accelerating pace. Improvements in performance, stability, and specificity are put forwards year after year, and researchers continue to propose and demonstrate new applications for the technology. So why aren’t MOFs more widely used? Arguably the biggest reason is that MOFs almost always form as micron-scale powders. Regardless of whether you want a storage cylinder, a separation column, or a fluidised bed reactor, powders are a pretty poor choice, creating massive pressure drops, clogging valves, and escaping downstream.
MOFs, then, need to be pelletised for most applications, but traditional methods produce pellets that are poorly packed and with a lot of the mass occupied by the binder. Often, the drop in performance this caused made it no longer worth it to use the materials at all. Our breakthrough came in 2014, when we learned how to synthesise MOFs not as powders but ‘monoliths’ of up to a cm in size. The material is better packed and without wasted weight, meaning we see leaps in both volumetric and gravimetric performance – often by over 100%. By overcoming this ‘pelletisation problem’ we unlock a huge back-catalogue of research spanning thirty years.
“We go further by standing on the shoulders of giants with world unique Advanced Materials integrated in process systems.”
with state-of-the-art molecular simulations and machine learning
The modularity of MOFs provides a colossal design space to work with. This means that for almost any storage or separation process, a MOF likely exists (or can be designed) to do it efficiently. Determining which materials will work used to involve lengthy lab trials and a healthy amount of guesswork. Molecular simulations have become accurate enough to take over. We use these screens to address a ‘problem statement’ provided by a customer: addressing a challenge such as how best to separate a particular gas from a mixture under given conditions. Once identified, the shortlisted candidates will be evaluated using our process modelling capabilities to choose the best performing material based on a combination of system performance indicators and other relevant properties not covered in computational screening, such as chemical stability, robustness, ease of synthesis.
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What makes a material optimal for a specific set of operating conditions? Superior capacity? Better selectivity? Ease of regeneration? Undoubtedly, all of the above come into play, but when coming up against fundamental trade-offs, choosing the right material means understanding the interplay of competing factors at different scales. Our dry-lab uniqueness allows us to accelerate and integrate both the optimal material and process design. From atomistic modelling of porous structure of selected MOFs to evaluation of their fundamental properties, through to process design, full dynamic simulation, and performance optimisation, our team offers a breadth of experience in design of gas separation and storage systems that be scaled up with improved techno-economics.
We can develop cost-effective, energy efficient, and zero emission engineering solutions for a variety of gas separation and storage applications. We develop and deploy compact, modular, and plug ‘n play systems for CO2 capture, hydrogen storage, cabin air recirculation, cooling systems, and water harvesting. We develop a technology that is flexible and can be easily scaled to accommodate different operating conditions and business needs. Our engineers can work with your in-house team or independently to provide you with the best possible solution that matches your business need.