Interactions of thiophenes with C300 Basolite MOF in solution by the temperature-programmed adsorption and desorption,spectroscopy and simulations

Aromatic sulfur compounds, e.g. thiophene (T), benzothiophene (BT), dibenzothiophene (DBT), 4,6-dimethyldibenzothiophene (4,6-DMDBT) are present in petroleum and fossil fuels, and cause air pollution, degradation of catalytic converters, deactivation of fuel-reforming catalysts. In this paper, we report kinetic, thermodynamic, spectroscopic and computational studies of adsorption of T, BT, DBT, and 4,6-DMDBT from solution in n-alkane on metal–organic framework (MOF) Basolite C300 at 25–115 °C. The novel temperature-programmed adsorption/desorption method allows the in situ measurement of an adsorption capacity at the variable temperature, and after the cycle “adsorption/desorption”. Adsorption of BT, DBT and 4,6-DMDBT at 25 °C occurs via the formation of the stoichiometric 1:1 adsorption complexes. BT adsorbs reversibly, while 4,6-DMDBT adsorbs irreversibly. The formation of the adsorption complex of the aromatic sulfur compound with MOF is confirmed by the fluorescence spectroscopy for the first time. The DFT computations of the geometry and energy of dispersive versus electronic interactions of T and DBT with the structural units of the C300 MOF are reported for the first time. The mechanism of adsorption is proposed as a combination of dispersive and electronic interactions of the aromatic sulfur compounds with BTC linker and Cu(II) CUS of C300 MOF.