Porous Materials for a Sustainable Energy Future Through Neutron Scattering

Science Highlights

• Benzene Capture in MOFs – Nature Materials, 2024, 10.1038/s41563-024-02029-1
  Neutron diffraction and inelastic scattering tracked benzene binding and positioning at defect sites within MOFs, clarifying how framework modifications enhance trace benzene capture at the molecular level.
• Dense Hydrogen Storage in Frameworks – Nature Chemistry, 2024, 10.1038/s41557-024-01443-x
  Neutron diffraction and inelastic neutron scattering revealed site-specific hydrogen adsorption and dense packing within small-pore hydridic frameworks, demonstrating stabilized high-density hydrogen storage under ambient conditions.
• Amine Behavior in Porous Silica – Accounts of Chemical Research, 2023, 10.1021/acs.accounts.3c00363
  Neutron scattering (SANS, QENS) provided insight into the distribution and mobility of amines within porous silica supports, revealing how molecular behavior under confinement influences CO₂ sorption performance.
• Molecular Motion in Zeolite Pores – Nature Communications, 2025, 10.1038/s41467-025-57242-6
  Quasi-elastic neutron scattering captured the effects of pore confinement on molecular rotational and translational motions, revealing how asymmetric rotations slow diffusion within zeolite channels.
• Hydrogen Sites in Aluminum Formate – Journal of the American Chemical Society, 2023, 10.1021/jacs.3c08037
  In situ neutron powder diffraction identified precise hydrogen adsorption sites in aluminum formate frameworks under working conditions, providing critical insights for designing materials for hydrogen storage applications.
• Hydrogen Adsorption in MOFs – ACS Materials Letters, 2024, 10.1021/acsmaterialslett.4c01246
  Neutron diffraction with D₂ gas visualized real-time hydrogen arrangements within MOF pores, clarifying how pore geometry governs adsorption behavior and uptake in porous frameworks.
• CO₂ Hydrogenation Mechanism – Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 2025, 10.1002/anie.202501943
  Neutron crystallography mapped hydride positions within a triiridium complex during CO₂ hydrogenation, offering mechanistic insights into reversible CO₂ capture and hydrogenation cycles.
• Plastic Upcycling to Gasoline – Nature Chemistry, 2024, 10.1038/s41557-024-01506-z
  In situ inelastic and small-angle neutron scattering tracked polyethylene activation, cracking, and hydrogen transfer in zeolites, elucidating self-supplied hydrogen pathways for plastic upcycling to gasoline.