Infrared study of the influence of reducible iron(III) metal sites on the adsorption of CO, CO2, propane, propene and propyne in the mesoporous metal-organic framework MIL-100.

The present study illustrates the importance of the oxidation state of iron within the mesoporous iron trimesate [{Fe(3)O(H(2)O)(2)F(0.81)(OH)(0.19)}{C(6)H(3)(CO(2))(3)}(2)] denoted MIL-100(Fe) (MIL= Material from Institut Lavoisier) during adsorption of molecules that can interact with the accessible metal sites through π-back donation. Adsorption of CO has been first followed by FTIR spectroscopy to quantify the Lewis acid sites in the dehydrated Fe(III) sample, outgassed at 150 °C, and on the partially reduced Fe(II/III), outgassed at 250 °C. The exposure of MIL-100(Fe) to CO(2), propane, propene and propyne has then been studied by FTIR spectroscopy and microcalorimetry. It appears that π-back donating molecules are strongly adsorbed on reduced iron(II) sites despite the weaker Lewis acidity of cus Fe(2+) sites compared to that of Fe(3+) ones, as shown by pyridine adsorption.