Nitrogen oxides are adverse poisonous gases present in the atmosphere and having detrimental effects on the human health and environment. In this work, we propose a new type of mesoporous materials capable of capturing nitrogen monoxide (NO) from air. The designed material combines the robust Santa Barbara Amorphous-15 silica scaffold and ultrastable Blatter-type radicals acting as NO traps. Using in situ electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy, we demonstrate that NO capture from air is selective and reversible at practical conditions, thus making Blatter radical-decorated silica highly promising for environmental applications.
Parahydrogen, being one of two nuclear spin isomers of molecular hydrogen, is required in a number of applications, including hydrogen liquefaction for energy storage and transportation. Obtaining pure parahydrogen is vital for these tasks, thus requiring approaches for efficient ortho−para (OP) hydrogen conversion. In this work, we for the first time demonstrate the extraordinary potential of metal−organic frameworks (MOF) as OP-conversion catalysts. In particular, the specific conversion rate constant of Ni-MOF-74 is found 145-fold higher than that of industrially used catalysts (e.g., hydrous ferric oxide), thus opening new horizons in hydrogen liquefaction and storage and, ultimately, in the broad use of hydrogen energy.
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