We report an ion-exchanged zeolite as an excellent candidate for large-scale application in hydrogen isotope separation. Ag(I)-exchanged zeolite Y has been synthesized through a standard ion-exchange procedure. The D₂/H₂ separation performance has been systematically investigated via thermal desorption spectroscopy (TDS). Undercoordinated Ag⁺ in zeolite AgY acts as a strong adsorption site and adorbs preferentially the heavier isotopologue even above liquid nitrogen temperature. The highest D₂/H₂ selectivity of 10 is found at an exposure temperature of 90 K. Furthermore, the high Al content of the zeolite structure leads to a high density of Ag sites, resulting in a high gas uptake. In the framework, approximately one-third of the total physisorbed hydrogen isotopes are adsorbed on the Ag sites, corresponding to 3 mmol/g. A density functional theory (DFT) calculation reveals that the isotopologue-selective adsorption of hydrogen at Ag sites contributes to the outstanding hydrogen isotope separation, which has been directly observed through cryogenic thermal desorption spectroscopy. The overall performance of zeolite AgY, showing good selectivity combined with high gas uptake, is very promising for future technical applications.

中文翻译：

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用于高效氢同位素分离的 Ag 交换沸石的化学亲和力

我们报告了一种离子交换沸石作为在氢同位素分离中大规模应用的优秀候选者。Ag(I) 交换沸石 Y 已通过标准离子交换程序合成。D ₂ /H ₂分离性能已通过热解吸光谱（TDS）系统地研究。沸石 AgY 中配位不足的Ag ^{+充当强吸附位点，甚至在高于液氮温度时也优先吸附较重的同位素体。}最高D ₂ /H ₂在 90 K 的暴露温度下发现选择性为 10。此外，沸石结构的高 Al 含量导致高密度的 Ag 位点，从而导致高气体吸收。在该框架中，大约三分之一的总物理吸附氢同位素被吸附在 Ag 位点上，相当于 3 mmol/g。密度泛函理论 (DFT) 计算表明，通过低温热脱附光谱法直接观察到，Ag 位点处氢的同位素体选择性吸附有助于实现出色的氢同位素分离。沸石 AgY 的整体性能表现出良好的选择性和高气体吸收率，对于未来的技术应用非常有前景。