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The development of molecule-based porous material families and their future prospects

Nature Materials volume 21, pages 983–985 (2022)Cite this article

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Metal–organic frameworks, porous coordination network materials constructed with metal ions and organic molecules, have grown over the past 20 years into an innovative chemistry that has contributed to solutions for the problems faced by humanity in the environment, resources, energy and health.

Gases are essential substances that are closely related to functions in the environment, energy applications and life activities. Many types of porous materials, including carbons, clays and minerals, and silicates (such as zeolites and mesoporous silica), have been utilized in everyday life applications related to gas sciences and technologies. There was a need for advanced porous materials that outperform conventional materials for gas storage, separation and conversion. Since the early nineteenth century, coordination polymers (CPs), which are constructed from metal ions and bridging ligands, have been studied with a focus on their crystal structures. In the late 1990s, CPs with stable permanent porosity that exhibit gas adsorption were discovered1,2. This meant that the organic components could be modularly designed for chosen pore shapes and functionalities. Since this discovery, CPs have exploded as porous materials collectively called porous coordination polymers or metal–organic frameworks (MOFs). MOFs are highly designable in structure and functionality due to their rich coordination geometry and the variety of functional organic molecules, which enable a wide degree of structural and chemical control at synthesis. Their high porosity and surface area distinguish MOFs from conventional porous materials. The chemistry of MOFs has spilled over into the creation of more molecule-based porous materials, which have been actively studied, such as covalent–organic frameworks, polymers of intrinsic microporosity, and porous molecular solids3.

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Fig. 1: Major MOF discoveries and developments over the past 20 years.
Fig. 2: Porous materials can manipulate gases, ions and macromolecules and contribute to society in many aspects.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences, Institute for Advanced Study, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan

    Satoshi Horike & Susumu Kitagawa

  2. Department of Synthetic Chemistry and Biological Chemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan

    Satoshi Horike

  3. Department of Materials Science and Engineering, School of Molecular Science and Engineering, Vidyasirimedhi Institute of Science and Technology, Rayong, Thailand

    Satoshi Horike

  4. Laboratory for Green Porous Materials, Institute of Materials Research and Engineering, Singapore, Singapore

    Susumu Kitagawa

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  1. Satoshi Horike
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  2. Susumu Kitagawa
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Correspondence to Satoshi Horike or Susumu Kitagawa.

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Nature Materials thanks Christian Serre and the other, anonymous, reviewer(s) for their contribution to the peer review of this work.

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Horike, S., Kitagawa, S. The development of molecule-based porous material families and their future prospects. Nat. Mater. 21, 983–985 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41563-022-01346-7

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