The ever‐increasing demand for clean and renewable power sources has sparked intensive research on water splitting to produce hydrogen, in which the exploration of electrocatalysts is the central ...issue. Herein, a new strategy, metal–organic framework template‐directed fabrication of hierarchically structured Co3O4@X (X = Co3O4, CoS, C, and CoP) electrocatalysts for efficient oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is developed, where Co3O4@X are derived from cobalt carbonatehydroxide@zeolitic‐imidazolate‐framework‐67 (CCH@ZIF‐67). Unique hierarchical structure and synergistic effect of resulting catalysts endow abundant exposed active sites, facile ion diffusion path, and improved conductivity, being favorable for improving catalytic activity of them. Consequently, these derivatives Co3O4@X reveal highly efficient electrocatalytic performance with long‐term durability for the OER, much superior to previously reported cobalt‐based catalysts as well as the Ir/C catalyst. Particularly, Co3O4@CoP exhibits the highest electrocatalytic capability with the lower overpotential of 238 mV at the current density of 10 mA cm−2. Furthermore, Co3O4@X can also efficiently catalyze other small molecules through electro‐oxidation reaction (e.g., glycerol, methanol, or ethanol). It is expected that the strategy presented here can be extended to the fabrication of other composite electrode materials with hierarchical structures for more efficient water splitting.
A new strategy for the fabrication of hierarchically structured composites as highly effective and stable electrocatalysts is proposed. The oxidation, sulfurization, carbonization, and phosphorization of premade cobalt carbonate hydroxide@zeolitic‐imidazolate‐framework‐67 (CCH@ZIF‐67) produced Co3O4@X (X = Co3O4, CoS, C, and CoP) derivatives, respectively, which as electrocatalysts exhibit excellent performance in the oxygen evolution reaction with low overpotential and high stability.
Metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) have emerged as porous solids of a superior type for the fabrication of membranes. However, it is still challenging to prepare a uniformly dispersed robust MOF hybrid ...membrane. Herein, we propose a simple and powerful strategy, namely, coordination‐driven in situ self‐assembly, for the fabrication of MOF hybrid membranes. On the basis of the coordination interactions between metal ions and ligands and/or the functional groups of the organic polymer, this method was confirmed to be feasible for the production of a stable membrane with greatly improved MOF‐particle dispersion in and compatibility with the polymer, thus providing outstanding separation ability. As an experimental proof of concept, a high‐quality ZIF‐8/PSS membrane was fabricated that showed excellent performance in the nanofiltration and separation of dyes from water.
Mopping up the mess: A hybrid membrane composed of the metal–organic framework (MOF) ZIF‐8 and poly(sodium 4‐styrenesulfonate) was prepared by a coordination‐driven in situ self‐assembly method. The MOF particles were well‐dispersed in the polymer in the resulting stable membrane (see picture), which showed excellent performance in the nanofiltration and separation of dyes from water.
Computational methodologies for metal--organic frameworks and their application in gas separations were investigated. Topics related to molecular modeling are also addressed.
Despite numerous inherent merits of metal–organic frameworks (MOFs), structural fragility has imposed great restrictions on their wider involvement in many applications, such as in catalysis. Herein, ...a strategy for enhancing stability and enabling functionality in a labile Zr(IV)‐MOF has been proposed by in situ porphyrin substitution. A size‐ and geometry‐matched robust linear porphyrin ligand 4,4′‐(porphyrin‐5,15‐diyl)dibenzolate (DCPP2−) is selected to replace the 4,4′‐(1,3,6,8‐tetraoxobenzolmn3,8phenanthroline‐2,7(1H,3H,6H,8H)‐diyl)dibenzoate (NDIDB2−) ligand in the synthesis of BUT‐109(Zr), affording BUT‐110 with varied porphyrin contents. Compared to BUT‐109(Zr), the chemical stability of BUT‐110 series is greatly improved. Metalloporphyrin incorporation endows BUT‐110 MOFs with high catalytic activity in the photoreduction of CO2, in the absence of photosensitizers. By tuning the metal species and porphyrin contents in BUT‐110, the resulting BUT‐110‐50%‐Co is demonstrated to be a good photocatalyst for selective CO2‐to‐CO reduction, via balancing the chemical stability, photocatalytic efficiency, and synthetic cost. This work highlights the advantages of in situ ligand substitution for MOF modification, by which uniform distribution and high content of the incoming ligand are accessible in the resulting MOFs. More importantly, it provides a promising approach to convert unstable MOFs, which mainly constitute the vast MOF database but have always been neglected, into robust functional materials.
The in situ porphyrin substitution strategy is developed for modifying labile interpenetrated BUT‐109(Zr), affording BUT‐110 with enhanced chemical stability and photocatalytic activity. By tuning the species and contents of metalloporphyrin in BUT‐110, some of the BUT‐110 MOFs may serve as potential photocatalysts for selective CO2‐to‐CO reduction, in the absence of photosensitizer.
The exploration of efficient electrocatalysts is the central issue for boosting the overall efficiency of water splitting. Herein, pertinently creating active sites and improving conductivity for ...metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) is proposed to tailor electrocatalytic properties for overall water splitting. An Ni(II)‐MOF nanosheet array is presented as an ideal material model and a facile alkali‐etched strategy is developed to break its NiO bonds accompanied with the introduction of extra‐framework K cations, which contribute to creating highly active open metal sites and largely improving the electrical conductivity. As a result, the assembled defect‐Ni‐MOF||defect‐Ni‐MOF electrolyte cell delivers a lower and stable voltage of 1.50 V at 10 mA cm−2 in alkaline medium for overall water splitting, comparable to the combination of iridium and platinum as benchmark catalysts.
The introduction of defects into metal–organic framework (MOF) by alkali‐etching treatment to create rich active sites and tailor electrical conductivity is proposed. The resultant defect‐rich Ni(II)‐MOF nanosheet array exhibits excellent electrocatalytic overall water splitting performance, comparable to the noble metal‐based benchmark catalysts.
Conspectus Metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) have been attracting tremendous attention owing to their great structural diversity and functional tunability. Despite numerous inherent merits and big ...progress in the fundamental research (synthesizing new compounds, discovering new structures, testing associated properties, etc.), poor chemical stability of most MOFs severely hinders their involvement in practical applications, which is the final goal for developing new materials. Therefore, constructing new stable MOFs or stabilizing extant labile MOFs is quite important. As with them, some “potential” applications would come true and a lot of new applications under harsh conditions can be explored. Efficient strategies are being pursued to solve the stability problem of MOFs and thereby achieve and expand their applications. In this Account, we summarize the research advance in the design and synthesis of chemically stable MOFs, particularly those stable in acidic, basic, and aqueous systems, as well as in the exploration of their applications in several expanding fields of environment, energy, and food safety, which have been dedicated in our lab over the past decade. The strategies for accessing stable MOFs can be classified into: (a) assembling high-valent metals (hard acid, such as Zr4+, Al3+) with carboxylate ligands (hard base) for acid-stable MOFs; (b) combining low-valent metals (soft acid, such as Co2+, Ni2+) and azolate ligands (soft base, such as pyrazolate) for alkali-resistant MOFs; (c) enhancing the connectivity of the building unit; (d) contracting or rigidifying the ligand; (e) increasing the hydrophobicity of the framework; and (f) substituting liable building units with stable ones (such as metal metathesis) to obtain robust MOFs. In addition, other factors, including the geometry and symmetry of building units, framework–framework interaction, and so forth, have also been taken into account in the design and synthesis of stable MOFs. On the basis of these approaches, the stability of resulting MOFs under corresponding conditions has been remarkably enhanced. With high chemical stability achieved, the MOFs have found many new and significant applications, aiming at addressing global challenges related to environmental pollution, energy shortage, and food safety. A series of stable MOFs have been constructed for detecting and eliminating contaminations. Various fluorescent MOFs were rationally customized to be powerful platforms for sensing hazardous targets in food and water, such as dioxins, antibiotics, veterinary drugs, and heavy metal ions. Some hydrophobic MOFs even showed effective and specific capture of low-concentration volatile organic compounds. Novel MOFs with record-breaking acid/base/nucleophilic regent resistance have expanded their application scope under harsh conditions. BUT-8(Cr)A, as the most acid-stable MOF yet, showed reserved structural integrity in concentrated H2SO4 and recorded high proton conductivity; the most alkali-resistant MOF, PCN-601, retained crystallinity even in boiling saturated NaOH aqueous solution, and such base-stable MOFs composed of non-noble metal clusters and poly pyrazolate ligands also demonstrated great potential in heterogeneous catalysis in alkaline/nucleophilic systems for the first time. It is believed that this Account will provide valuable references on stable MOFs’ construction as well as application expansion toward harsh conditions, thereby being helpful to promote MOF materials to step from fundamental research to practical applications.
With the assistance of microwave irradiation, greenish‐yellow luminescent graphene quantum dots (gGQDs) with a quantum yield (QY) up to 11.7% are successfully prepared via cleaving graphene oxide ...(GO) under acid conditions. The cleaving and reduction processes are accomplished simultaneously using microwave treatment without additional reducing agent. When the gGQDs are further reduced with NaBH4, bright blue luminescent graphene quantum dots (bGQDs) are obtained with a QY as high as 22.9%. Both GQDs show well‐known excitation‐dependent PL behavior, which could be ascribed to the transition from the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) to the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) with a carbene‐like triplet ground state. Electrochemiluminescence (ECL) is observed from the graphene quantum dots for the first time, suggesting promising applications in ECL biosensing and imaging. The ECL mechanism is investigated in detail. Furthermore, a novel sensor for Cd2+ is proposed based on Cd2+ induced ECL quenching with cysteine (Cys) as the masking agent.
Two‐color graphene quantum dots are prepared using a facile microwave‐assisted approach to have fluorescent quantum yields as high as 22.9%. The graphene quantum dots are demonstrated to be electrochemiluminescent. A novel electrochemiluminescence sensor for Cd2+ is proposed based on the competitive coordination between cysteine and graphene quantum dots for metal ions.
Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs), as a class of persistent and highly toxic organic pollutants, have been posing a great threat to human health and the environment. The sensing of these ...compounds is important but challenging. Here, we report a highly stable zirconium-based metal-organic framework (MOF), Zr
O
(OH)
(HCOO)
(CPTTA)
(BUT-17) with one-dimensional hexagonal channels and phenyl-rich pore surfaces for the recognition and sensing of two representative PCDDs, 2,3-dichlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (BCDD) and 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD), based on the fluorescence quenching. BUT-17 exhibits high sensing ability with the detection limits as low as 27 and 57 part per billion toward BCDD and TCDD, respectively, and is very selective as well without the interference of similar compounds. The recognition of BUT-17 toward BCDD is demonstrated by single-crystal structure of its guest-loaded phase, in which the fluorescence-quenched complexes form between the adsorbed BCDD molecules and the MOF host through π-π stacking and hydrogen bonding interactions.
Antibiotics and organic explosives are among the main organic pollutants in wastewater; their detection and removal are quite important but challenging. As a new class of porous materials, ...metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) are considered as a promising platform for the sensing and adsorption applications. In this work, guided by a topological design approach, two stable isostructural Zr(IV)-based MOFs, Zr6O4(OH)8(H2O)4(CTTA)8/3 (BUT-12, H3CTTA = 5′-(4-carboxyphenyl)-2′,4′,6′-trimethyl-1,1′:3′,1″-terphenyl-4,4″-dicarboxylic acid) and Zr6O4(OH)8(H2O)4(TTNA)8/3 (BUT-13, H3TTNA = 6,6′,6″-(2,4,6-trimethylbenzene-1,3,5-triyl)tris(2-naphthoic acid)) with the the-a topological structure constructed by D 4h 8-connected Zr6 clusters and D 3h 3-connected linkers were designed and synthesized. The two MOFs are highly porous with the Brunauer–Emmett–Teller surface area of 3387 and 3948 m2 g–1, respectively. Particularly, BUT-13 features one of the most porous water-stable MOFs reported so far. Interestingly, these MOFs represent excellent fluorescent properties, which can be efficiently quenched by trace amounts of nitrofurazone (NZF) and nitrofurantoin (NFT) antibiotics as well as 2,4,6-trinitrophenol (TNP) and 4-nitrophenol (4-NP) organic explosives in water solution. They are responsive to NZF and TNP at parts per billion (ppb) levels, which are among the best performing luminescent MOF-based sensing materials. Simultaneously, both MOFs also display high adsorption abilities toward these organic molecules. It was demonstrated that the adsorption plays an important role in the preconcentration of analytes, which can further increase the fluorescent quenching efficiency. These results indicate that BUT-12 and -13 are favorable materials for the simultaneous selective detection and removal of specific antibiotics and organic explosives from water, being potentially useful in monitoring water quality and treating wastewater.
PDF
