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Crystal engineering

Interweaving different metal–organic frameworks

Nature Chemistry volume 15, pages 1324–1326 (2023)Cite this article

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The intentional interweaving of two different metal–organic framework (MOF) lattices could offer a strategy for combining the disparate properties of the two frameworks within a single MOF material. Now, the rational construction of such hetero-interpenetrated MOFs has been demonstrated.

A compelling property of metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) is their propensity for modulation. Along with the material properties that emerge from the topology of a MOF — including pore size, pore volume and surface area — a framework is also imbued with the molecular properties of its components. The assembly of a typical MOF involves the selection of a metal ion and organic molecule, which form the metal clusters (secondary building units) that constitute the vertices of the frameworks and their linkers, respectively, and which impart numerous desirable properties, such as stability, catalytic activity, conduction (heat, electron, proton) and magnetism. When additional material properties are required, co-ligands and/or additional metal ions can be introduced to yield well-defined, multicomponent frameworks1,2. This mixing and matching of components to obtain a material composed of a single multinary framework has, so far, been the method of obtaining well-defined, multicomponent MOFs. Now, writing in Nature Chemistry, Shane Telfer and colleagues introduce an alternative strategy: the assembly of hetero-interpenetrated MOFs3.

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Fig. 1: Construction and application of hetero-interpenetrated MOFs.

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  1. Department of Chemistry, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS, USA

    Tendai Gadzikwa

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Correspondence to Tendai Gadzikwa.

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Gadzikwa, T. Interweaving different metal–organic frameworks. Nat. Chem. 15, 1324–1326 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41557-023-01335-6

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