Metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) are porous materials in which metal ions and long carbon-based molecules form crystals with built-in cavities. By varying the building blocks, specific substances can be captured and stored inside the cavities. Following pioneering work by Richard Robson, around the turn of the millenium, Susumu Kitagawa and Omar Yaghi developed more flexible and stable MOFs. These are possible to use, for example, to harvest water from desert air, capture carbon dioxide, store toxic gases or catalyse chemical reactions.
Scientific contribution
Research synthesis
Development of metal–organic frameworks
Susumu Kitagawa · Richard Robson · Omar M. Yaghi
Question
Can molecular building blocks be linked into designed, stable architectures with large and tunable internal cavities?
Advance
Robson pioneered open framework structures, while Kitagawa and Yaghi developed flexible and stable metal–organic frameworks whose properties can be tuned through their building blocks.
Significance
MOFs enable selective capture, storage, separation and catalysis, with applications including water harvesting, carbon dioxide capture and hydrogen storage.
