The separation of alkanes with different degrees of branch-ing, particularly mono- and di-branched isomers, represents a challenging yet important industrial process for the pro-duction of premium gasoline blending components with high octane number. We report here the separation of line-ar/mono-branched and di-branched alkanes through com-plete molecular sieving by a robust aluminum-based MOF material, Al-bttotb (H3bttotb= 4,4',4''-(benzene-1,3,5-triyltris(oxy))tribenzoicacid). Single- and multi-component adsorption experiments reveal that the material adsorbs line-ar and mono-branched alkanes, but fully excludes their di-branched isomers. Adsorption sites of alkanes within the MOF channels have been identified by single-crystal X-ray diffraction studies, and adsorption mechanism explored through computational calculations and modeling. The high-ly selective adsorption of the MOF should be attributed to its optimal pore dimensions.

中文翻译：

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通过具有最佳孔尺寸的坚固铝基金属有机骨架材料拆分单支链和双支链烷烃异构体

具有不同支化度的烷烃，特别是单支化和双支化异构体的分离，代表了生产高辛烷值优质汽油混合组分的具有挑战性但重要的工业过程。我们在此报告了通过坚固的铝基 MOF 材料 Al-bttotb（H3bttotb= 4,4',4''-（苯-1,3,5-三基三（氧基））三苯甲酸）。单组分和多组分吸附实验表明，该材料吸附直链烷烃和单支链烷烃，但完全排除它们的双支链异构体。通过单晶 X 射线衍射研究确定了 MOF 通道内烷烃的吸附位点，通过计算计算和建模探索和吸附机制。MOF 的高选择性吸附应归因于其最佳孔径。