Novel Porous Organic Polymers for Ammonia Adsorption

Patent Status

Brief Description

Ammonia is used in many industrial and commercial applications, for example in the manufacture of fertilizers and cleaners.  However, ammonia is toxic at high concentrations and, therefore, safe storage and transportation of ammonia is required. In addition, trace amounts of ammonia in the atmosphere contaminate and interfere with certain industrial processes, such as semiconductor fabrication, which requires ultra-pure air. Proper ammonia management includes the adsorption of the gas under each of these pressure regimes: high-pressure adsorption for safe storage and transportation and low-pressure adsorption for the removal of trace contaminants from the ambient air. Current methods of adsorption include simple salts, such as MgCl₂, but these are not efficient for low-pressure adsorption and furthermore their ammonia cycle is inefficient, requiring significant heat exchange and large changes in volume.

Investigators at UC Berkeley have developed a novel polymer for ammonia adsorption that uses acidic materials placed in a spatial arrangement that allows for cooperative adsorption. This not only increases the efficiency of adsorption but also is effective at both high-pressure and low-pressure ammonia adsorption, resulting in multiple applications of the technology.

Suggested uses

• Air purification of ammonia, for example for semiconductor fabrication
• Personal protective equipment for adsorption of chemical agents
• Safe on-board automobile storage of ammonia, for example in emission reduction technologies
• Safe storage and transportation of ammonia

Advantages

•        Can be applied to both high- and low-pressure ammonia adsorption
•        More efficient (high capacity) adsorption than traditional methods due to cooperative nature
•        Low heat exchange and volume changes of adsorbing material during ammonia cycling
•        Superior stability of material
•        Tolerates long-term ammonia exposure and multiple adsorption/desorption cycles

Publication