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In relation to this article, we declare that there is no conflict of interest.
Publication history
Received August 29, 2025
Revised January 4, 2026
Accepted January 12, 2026
Available online May 25, 2026
articles This is an Open-Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/bync/3.0) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
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Integrated Computational and Experimental Investigation of Hybrid Mixed-Linker ZIF-7-8 Crystals for H2/CO2 Separation

Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Universiti Putra Malaysia,
m_rezi@upm.edu.my
Korean Journal of Chemical Engineering, May 2026, 43(6), 1731-1746(16)
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11814-026-00653-y

Abstract

Hybrid mixed-linker ZIF-7-8 crystals were synthesized via the Delayed Linker Addition (DLA) method, enabling controlled incorporation of benzimidazolate (bIm) into ZIF-8 frameworks while retaining the sodalite (SOD) topology. By varying nucleation time (5–17 min) and bIm-to-mIm mass ratio (0.38–1.90), bIm incorporation reached up to 60.8%. The DLA approach also facilitated the integration of non-isostructural linkers, such as imidazole (23.2%) and 2-phenylimidazole (3.1%), expanding framework tunability. Characterization by XRD, FTIR, ¹H-NMR, and N₂ physisorption confirmed gradual pore aperture narrowing, surface area reduction (1,768 to 76 m2/g), and decreased pore volume (0.68 to 0.03 cm3/g), indicating successful framework constriction without collapse. Molecular simulations supported experimental trends, showing reductions in pore volume, crystallinity, and surface area with increasing bIm content. These ZIF-7-8 crystals were embedded in polysulfone to fabricate mixed matrix membranes, exhibiting improved H2/CO2 separation with a selectivity of 4.40 and H2 permeability of 9.42 Barrer, outperforming ZIF-8/PSF (3.07) and neat PSF (1.78). Simulated gas transport revealed a decline in CO₂ diffusivity (9.5×10−9 to 8.2×10−10 m2/s) and increased H2 diffusivity (1.14×10−8to 1.68×10−8 m2/s), boosting diffusion selectivity from 9.8 to 20.4. This work highlights the potential of the DLA method for designing tunable MOF materials tailored for gas separation applications.

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