Metal-organic framework (MOF) materials have emerged as one of the favorite crystalline porous materials (CPM) because of their compositional and geometric tunability and many possible applications. In efforts to develop better MOFs for gas storage and separation, a number of strategies including creation of open metal sites and implantation of Lewis base sites have been used to tune host-guest interactions. In addition to these chemical factors, the geometric features such as pore size and shape, surface area, and pore volume also play important roles in sorption energetics and uptake capacity. For efficient capture of small gas molecules such as carbon dioxide under ambient conditions, large surface area or high pore volume are often not needed. Instead, maximizing host-guest interactions or the density of binding sites by encaging gas molecules in snug pockets of pore space can be a fruitful approach. To put this concept into practice, the pore space partition (PSP) concept has been proposed and has achieved a great experimental success. In this account, we will highlight many efforts to implement PSP in MOFs and impact of PSP on gas uptake performance. In the synthetic design of PSP, it is helpful to distinguish between factors that contribute to the framework formation and factors that serve the purpose of PSP. Because of the need for complementary structural roles, the synthesis of MOFs with PSP often involves multicomponent systems including mixed ligands, mixed inorganic nodes, or both. It is possible to accomplish both framework formation and PSP with a single type of polyfunctional ligands that use some functional groups (called framework-forming group) for framework formation and the remaining functional groups (called pore-partition group) for PSP. Alternatively, framework formation and PSP can be shouldered by different chemical species. For example, in a mixed-ligand system, one ligand (called framework-forming agent) can play the role of the framework formation while the other type of ligand (called pore-partition agent) can assume the role of PSP. PSP is sensitive to the types of inorganic secondary building units (SBUs). The coexistence of SBUs complementary in charge, connectivity, and so on can promote PSP. The use of heterometallic systems can promote the diversity of SBUs coexistent under a given condition. Heterometallic system with metal ions of different oxidation states also provides the charge tunability of SBUs and the overall framework, providing an additional level of control in self-assembly and ultimately in the materials' properties. Of particular interest is the PSP in MIL-88 type (acs-type topology) structure, which has led to a huge family of CPMs (called pacs CPMs, pacs = partitioned acs) exhibiting low isosteric heat of adsorption and yet superior CO uptake capacity.

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) with the highest CO(2) uptake capacity are usually those equipped with open metal sites. Here we seek alternative strategies and mechanisms for developing high-performance CO(2) adsorbents. We demonstrate that through a ligand insertion pore space partition strategy, we can create crystalline porous materials (CPMs) with superior CO(2) uptake capacity. Specifically, a new material, CPM-33b-Ni without any open metal sites, exhibits the CO(2) uptake capacity comparable to MOF-74 with the same metal (Ni) at 298 K and 1 bar.

Despite their having much greater potential for compositional and structural diversity, heterometallic metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) reported so far have lagged far behind their homometallic counterparts in terms of CO2 uptake performance. Now the power of heterometallic MOFs is in full display, as shown by a series of new materials (denoted CPM-200s) with superior CO2 uptake capacity (up to 207.6 cm(3)/g at 273 K and 1 bar), close to the all-time record set by MOF-74-Mg. The isosteric heat of adsorption can also be tuned from -16.4 kJ/mol for CPM-200-Sc/Mg to -79.6 kJ/mol for CPM-200-V/Mg. The latter value is the highest reported for MOFs with Lewis acid sites. Some members of the CPM-200s family consist of combinations of metal ions (e.g., Mg/Ga, Mg/Fe, Mg/V, Mg/Sc) that have never been shown to coexist in any known crystalline porous materials. Such previously unseen combinations become reality through a cooperative crystallization process, which leads to the most intimate form of integration between even highly dissimilar metals, such as Mg(2+) and V(3+). The synergistic effects of heterometals bestow CPM-200s with the highest CO2 uptake capacity among known heterometallic MOFs and place them in striking distance of the all-time CO2 uptake record.

Metal-organic frameworks are a class of crystalline porous materials with potential applications in catalysis, gas separation and storage, and so on. Of great importance is the development of innovative synthetic strategies to optimize porosity, composition and functionality to target specific applications. Here we show a platform for the development of metal-organic materials and control of their gas sorption properties. This platform can accommodate a large variety of organic ligands and homo- or hetero-metallic clusters, which allows for extraordinary tunability in gas sorption properties. Even without any strong binding sites, most members of this platform exhibit high gas uptake capacity. The high capacity is accomplished with an isosteric heat of adsorption as low as 20 kJ mol−1 for carbon dioxide, which could bring a distinct economic advantage because of the significantly reduced energy consumption for activation and regeneration of adsorbents.

As trategy called ultramicroporous building unit (UBU) is introduced. It allows the creation of hierarchical biporous features that work in tandem to enhance gas uptake capacity and separation. Smaller pores from UBUs promote selectivity,w hile larger inter-UBUp acking pores increase uptake capacity.T he effectiveness of this UBUs trategy is shown with ac obalt MOF (denoted SNNU-45) in which octahedral cages with 4.5 pore sizeserve as UBUs.The C 2 H 2 uptake capacity at 1atm reaches 193.0 cm 3 g À1 (8.6 mmol g À1 ) at 273 Kand 134.0 cm 3 g À1 (6.0 mmol g À1 )at298 K. Suchhigh uptake capacity is accompanied by ahigh C 2 H 2 /CO 2 selectivity of up to 8.5 at 298 K. Dynamic breakthrough studies at room temperature and 1atm show aC 2 H 2 /CO 2 breakthrough time up to 79 min g À1 ,among top-performing MOFs.Grand canonical Monte Carlo simulations agree that ultrahigh C 2 H 2 /CO 2 selectivity is mainly from UBUultramicropores,while packing pores promote C 2 H 2 uptake capacity.

The concept of high-performance excited-state intramolecular proton transfer (ESIPT)-based fluorescent metal− organic framework (MOF) probes for Al 3+ is proposed in this work. By regulating the hydroxyl groups on the organic linker step by step, new fluorescent magnesium−organic framework (Mg−MOF) probes for Al 3+ ions were established based on the ESIPT fluorescence mechanism. It is observed for the first time that the number of intramolecular hydrogen bonds between adjacent hydroxyl and carboxyl groups can effectively adjust the ESIPT process and lead to tunable fluorescence sensing performance. Together with the well-designed porous and anionic framework, the Mg−TPP−DHBDC probe decorating with a pair of intramolecular hydrogen bonds exhibits extra-high quantitative fluorescence response to Al 3+ through an unusual turn-off (0−1.2 μM) and turn-on (4.2−15 μM) luminescence sensing mechanism. Notably, the 28 nM limit of detection value represents the lowest record among all reported MOF-based Al 3+ fluorescent sensors up to now. Benefited from the unique turn−off−on ESIPT fluorescence detection process, the Mg−TPP−DHBDC MOF sensor exhibits single Al 3+ detection compared with other 16 common metal ions including Ga 3+ , In 3+ , Fe 3+ , Cr 3+ , Ca 2+ , and Mg 2+ . Impressively, such an Al 3+ selective sensing process can even be fulfilled by the reusable MOF test paper detected by naked eyes. Overall, the quantitative Al 3+ detection, together with the extraordinary sensitivity, selectivity, fast response, and good reusability, strongly supports our concept of ESIPT-based fluorescent MOF Al 3+ probes and makes Mg−TPP−DHBDC one of the most powerful Al 3+ fluorescent sensors.

Eight members of the Ag/1,2,4-triazole/polyoxometalates (POMs) hybrid supramolecular family, namely, [Ag4(dmtrz)4][Mo8O26] (dmtrz=3,5-dimethyl-1,2,4-triazole, 1), [Ag6(3atrz)6][PMo12O40]2.H2O (3atrz=3-amino-1,2,4-triazole, 2), [Ag2(3atrz)2]2[HPMoVI10MoV2O40] (3), [Ag2(dmtrz)2]2[HPMoVI10MoV2O40] (4), [Ag2(trz)2]2[Mo8O26] (trz=1,2,4-triazole, 5), [Ag2(3atrz)2][Ag2(3atrz)2(Mo8O26)] (6), [Ag4(4atrz)2Cl][Ag(Mo8O26)] (4atrz=4-amino-1,2,4-triazole, 7), and [Ag5(trz)4]2[Ag2(Mo8O26)].4H2O (8), were synthesized through hydrothermal reactions of 1,2,4-triazole or its derivatives with appropriate silver salts and molybdates. Crystal structure analysis reveals that the POM-dependent Ag-1,2,4-triazolate units in these hybrid compounds form a novel tetranuclear cluster (1), a unique double calix[3]arene-shaped hexamer (2), zigzag chains (5 and 6), helix chains (3, 4, and 8), and an interesting looped chain (7). A series of hydrogen bonding-based supramolecular assemblies varying among the 0-D+0-D (1 and 2), 0-D+1-D (3 and 4), 1-D+1-D (5 and 7), and 1-D+2-D (6) modes between the organomatic cations and POM anions were observed in these structures. Moreover, the inorganic chain [Ag(Mo8O26)]n3n- in 7 constructed by the building block [Mo8O26]4- linked only via single Ag+ ion is unprecedented. Compound 8 is the first high-dimensional framework constructed from the [Ag2(Mo8O26)]n2n- rod-shaped subunits. These hybrid supramolecular compounds present interesting photochemical properties. The spectroscopic experiments show that they not only are potential semiconductor materials but also have interesting photoluminescence phenomena, including O-->Mo [LMCT] and intraligand [pi-pi*] emissions generated by internal heavy metal effect.

The conjugation of metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) into different multicomponent materials to precisely construct aligned heterostructures is fascinating but elusive owing to the disparate interfacial energy and nucleation kinetics. Herein, a promising lattice‐matching growth strategy is demonstrated for conductive MOF/layered double hydroxide (cMOF/LDH) heteronanotube arrays with highly ordered hierarchical porous structures enabling an ultraefficient oxygen evolution reaction (OER). CoNiFe‐LDH nanowires are used as interior template to engineer an interface by inlaying cMOF and matching two crystal lattice systems, thus conducting a graft growth of cMOF/LDH heterostructures along the LDH nanowire. A class of hierarchical porous cMOF/LDH heteronanotube arrays is produced through continuously regulating the transformation degree. The synergistic effects of the cMOF and LDH components significantly promote the chemical and electronic structures of the heteronanotube arrays and their electroactive surface area. Optimized heteronanotube arrays exhibit extraordinary OER activity with ultralow overpotentials of 216 and 227 mV to deliver current densities of 50 and 100 mA cm−2 with a small Tafel slope of 34.1 mV dec−1, ranking it among the best MOF and non‐noble‐metal‐based catalysts for OER. The robust performance under high current density and vigorous gas bubble conditions enable such hierarchical MOF/LDH heteronanotube arrays as promising materials for practical water electrolysis.