Research HighlightsShape Selective Separations
This is a map of the extent of strain experienced by popular molecules when they go through the pores of a class of absorbent materials known as zeolites. The illustration follows the convention of the familiar traffic light. A small molecule approaching a relatively large opening (upper-right region) would confront a "green light", and proceed to absorb within the pores. On the other hand, big molecules are prohibited entry when approaching small portals (red light; lower-left region). Intermediate -"yellow light"- cases are the most interesting, as they often lead to non-intuitive predictions regarding the selectivity of these zeolite materials. |