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Molecular nanoporous crystals

Predictable porosity

Nature Materials volume 10, pages 563–564 (2011)Cite this article

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The design of structures of organic nanoporous crystals has been hampered by the difficulty of placing functional moieties in a predictive manner. A modular strategy based on prefabricated organic nanocages having directional chiral interactions that self-assemble into the predicted crystals circumvents this problem.

Over the past decade, a dazzling array of novel nanoporous materials possessing interconnected voids of less than 2 nm in diameter have been developed, stimulated by potential applications in molecular separation, heterogeneous catalysis, gas storage and carbon dioxide capture. Most nanoporous materials — such as zeolites and metal–organic frameworks — possess crystalline order and a robust network of covalent or metal–ligand bonds, which prevents collapse of the structure and loss of porosity. In contrast, most organic compounds form crystals that are not porous, because their discrete molecular components pack space efficiently. Porous crystalline nanostructures from organic motifs that do not pack well incorporate additional solvent molecules to help fill the voids that arise from imperfect packing. In theory, subsequent removal of the solvent could result in solids with permanent porosity1, but in most cases the structure collapses into disorder or a denser crystal form2. As molecules within organic nanoporous crystals come in all shapes and sizes3,4,5,6, it has been hard to deduce a common structural feature on which to base rationale for the design of novel stable assemblies. Prediction of crystal structures, even for relatively simple organic compounds, remains difficult, and the additional complexity of calculating the position of guest solvent molecules represents a formidable challenge7. Now, Andrew Cooper and collaborators describe in Nature a predictive and modular approach8 to design nanoporous molecular crystals through robust interlocking of the windows of prefabricated organic nanocages9.

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Figure 1: Predictable packing of prefabricated organic nanocages into nanoporous crystals.

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  1. Neil B. McKeown is in the School of Chemistry, Cardiff University, Cardiff CF10 3AT, UK

    Neil B. McKeown

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  1. Neil B. McKeown
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Correspondence to Neil B. McKeown.

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McKeown, N. Predictable porosity. Nature Mater 10, 563–564 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/nmat3073

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