Rice University Hopes to Turn Natural Gas Cars into Reality

摘要

Houston, USA: A new study led by researchers at Rice University promises to help. Rather than shoehorn bulky high-pressure tanks like those used in buses and trucks into light vehicles, the Department of Energy (DOE) encourages scientists to look at new materials that can store Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) at low pressure and at room temperature. Cage-like synthetic macromolecules called Metal Organic Frameworks (MOFs) are among the candidates. MOFs are nanoscale compounds of metal ions or clusters known as Secondary Building Units (SBUs) and organic binding ligands, or linkers. These linkers hold the SBUs together in a spongy network that can capture and store methane molecules in a tank under pressure.