Scientists at ExxonMobil and Spain's Instituto de Tecnologia Quimica have developed a new material capable of separating ethylene from ethane - known as cryogenic distillation - at room temperature, potentially reducing the energy required for the process by a quarter. The researchers used ITQ-55, a silica zeolite with a heart-shaped structure, which acted like a chemical sieve, for the ethylene molecules. "This is an important step forward in our quest to develop efficient methods that can be applied across many industrial processes," said Dr. Juan Carlos Izpisua Belmonte, director of the National Institute of Advanced
Scientists at ExxonMobil and Spain's Instituto de Tecnologia Quimica have developed a new material capable of separating ethylene from ethane - known as cryogenic distillation - at room temperature, potentially reducing the energy required for the process by a quarter. The researchers used ITQ-55, a silica zeolite with a heart-shaped structure, which acted like a chemical sieve, for the ethylene molecules. The teams said more work is needed to fully understand the potential of the zeolite material.