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Therare coexistence of the copper monomer and paddle-wheel dimerin the same crystal framework creates an apparent linear pseudocoppertrimer configuration that induces an unprecedented equalization ofpyridyl and carboxyl functionality in a heterofunctional pyridyl dicarboxylateligand, leading to an intriguing assembly into a highly symmetricalporous framework, despite the low symmetry of the ligand. The materialshows a total CO2uptake of 55 cm3/g at 1 atmand 273 K. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rational design and regulation of atomically precise photocatalysts are essential for constructing efficient photocatalytic systems tunable at both the atomic and molecular levels. Herein, we propose a platform-based strategy capable of integrating both pore space partition (PSP) and open-metal sites (OMSs) as foundational features for constructing high-performance photocatalysts. We demonstrate the first structural prototype obtained from this strategy: pore-partitioned NiTCPE- pstp (TCPE = 1,1,2,2-tetra(4-carboxylphenyl)ethylene, pstp = partitioned stp topology). Nonpartitioned NiTCPE- stp is constructed from six-connected [Ni 3 (μ 3 -OH)(COO) 6 ] trimer and TCPE linker to form 1D hexagonal channels with six coplanar OMSs directed at channel centers. After introducing triangular pore-partitioning ligands, half of the OMSs were retained, while the other half were used for PSP, leading to unprecedented microenvironment regulation of the pore structure. The resulting material integrates multiple advanced properties, including robustness, wider absorption range, enhanced electronic conductivity, and high CO 2 adsorption, all of which are highly desirable for photocatalytic applications. Remarkably, NiTCPE- pstp exhibits excellent CO 2 photoreduction activity with a high CO generation rate of 3353.6 μmol g -1 h -1 and nearly 100% selectivity. Theoretical and experimental studies show that the introduction of partitioning ligands not only optimizes the electronic structure to promote the separation and transfer of photogenerated carriers but also reduces the energy barrier for the formation of *COOH intermediates while promoting CO 2 activation and CO desorption. This work is believed to be the first example to integrate PSP strategies and OMSs within metal-organic framework (MOF) photocatalysts, which provides new insight as well as new structural prototype for the design and performance optimization of MOF-based photocatalysts.

Because of the high efficiency and mild reaction conditions, electrocatalytic CO 2 reduction (ECR) has attracted significant attention in recent years. However, the specific mechanism of the formation of the two-electron production (CO or HCOOH) in this reaction is still unclear. Herein, with density functional theory calculation and experimental manipulation, the specific mechanism of the selective two-electron reduction of CO 2 has been systematically investigated, employing the polyphenolate-substituted metalloporphyrinic frameworks, ZrPP-1-M (M = Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, and Zn), as model catalysts. Experimental observations and theoretical calculations discovered that ZrPP-1-Co is a more favorable catalyst for ECR among them. Compared with the formation of HCOOH, electroreduction of CO 2 into CO has more beneficial thermodynamic and kinetic routes with ZrPP-1-Co as a catalyst. After introducing the r-GO for improving the conductivity, the Faradaic efficiency for CO formation is 82.4% at -0.6 v (vs RHE).

Developing photoanodes with efficient visible-light harvesting and excellent charge separation still remains a key challenge in photoelectrochemical water splitting. Here zeolite-type chalcogenide CPM-121 is integrated with TiO 2 nanowires to form a heterostructured photoanode, in which crystalline CPM-121 particles serve as a visible light absorber and TiO 2 nanowires serve as an electron conductor. Owing to the small band gap of chalcogenides, the hybrid electrode demonstrates obvious absorption in visible-light range. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) shows that electron transport in the hybrid electrode has been significantly facilitated due to the heterojunction formation. A >3-fold increase in photocurrent is observed on the hybrid electrode under visible-light illumination when it is used as a photoanode in a neutral electrolyte without sacrificial agents. This study opens up a new avenue to explore the potential applications of crystalline porous chalcogenide materials for solar-energy conversion in photoelectrochemistry.

High-silica zeolites, as exemplified by ZSM-5, with excellent chemical and thermal stability, have generated a revolution in industrial catalysis. In contrast, prior to this work, high-silica-zeolite-like chalcogenides based on germanium/tin remained unknown, even after decades of research. Here six crystalline high-germanium or high-tin zeolite-type sulfides and selenides with four different topologies are reported. Their unprecedented framework compositions give these materials much improved thermal and chemical stability with high surface area (Langmuir surface area of 782 m(2)/g(-1)) comparable to or better than zeolites. Among them, highly stable CPM-120-ZnGeS allows for ion exchange with diverse metal or complex cations, resulting in fine-tuning in porosity, fast ion conductivity, and photoelectric response. Being among the most porous crystalline chalcogenides, CPM-120-ZnGeS (exchanged with Cs(+) ions) also shows reversible adsorption with high capacity and affinity for CO2 (98 and 73 cm(3) g(-1) at 273 and 298 K, respectively, isosteric heat of adsorption = 40.05 kJ mol(-1)). Moreover, CPM-120-ZnGeS could also function as a robust photocatalyst for water reduction to generate H2. The overall activity of H2 production from water, in the presence of Na2S-Na2SO3 as a hole scavenger, was 200 μmol h(-1)/(0.10 g). Such catalytic activity remained undiminished under illumination by UV light for as long as measured (200 h), demonstrating excellent resistance to photocorrosion even under intense UV radiation.

Four cubic zirconium-porphyrin frameworks, CPM-99(H2, Zn, Co, Fe), were synthesized by a molecular-configuration-guided strategy. Augmentation of meso-substituted side arms (with double-torsional biphenyl rings) of tetratopic porphyrin linkers leads to a successful implementation of zirconium-carboxylate frameworks with cubic 2.5 nm cage. The hard-templating effect of Zr6-polyoxo-cluster and uniformly embedded (metallo)porphyrin centers endow CPM-99 with highly desirable properties as precursors for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) catalysts. The pyrolytic products not only retain the microcubic morphology of the parent CPM-99 but also possess porphyrinic active sites, hierarchical porosity, and highly conducting networks. CPM-99Fe-derived material, denoted CPM-99Fe/C, exhibits the best ORR activity, comparable to benchmark 20% Pt/C in alkaline and acidic media, but CPM-99Fe/C is more durable and methanol-tolerant. This work demonstrates a new route for the development of nonprecious metal ORR catalysts from stable metalloporphyrinic MOFs.

Metal chalcogenides based on heterometallic Ge-Cu-S offer dual attractive features of lattice stabilization by high-valent Ge(4+) and band gap engineering into solar region by low-valent Cu(+). Herein via cationic amine intercalation, we present three new copper-rich materials with the Cu-to-Ge ratio as high as 3. Two different patterns of Cu-Ge-S distribution could be achieved within each honeycomb sheet. The decoration of such honeycomb sheet by -Cu-S- chain or self-coupling between two honeycomb sheets leads to two layer configurations with different thickness and band gaps. The band gap of these new phases (2.06-2.30 eV), tuned by the layer thickness and the Cu/Ge ratio, represents a significant red shift over known Cu-Ge-S phases with lower Cu/Ge ratios.

Two enantiomorphic metal-organic frameworks with zeotype SOD topology have been successfully synthesized from enantiopure L-alanine and D-alanine, respectively, which demonstrates the feasibility of fabricating MOFs that integrate the 4-connected zeotype topologies and homochiral nature by the employment of enantiopure amino acids.

The self-assembly between zinc dimer and 1,3,5-tris(2H-tetrazol-5-yl)benzene (H(3)BTT), promoted by a urea derivative, leads to a highly porous 3D framework with a large percentage (67%) of N-donor sites unused for bonding with metals. The material exhibits high gas storage capacity (ca. 1.89 wt % H(2) at 77 K and 1 atm; 98 cm(3)/g CO(2) at 273 K and 1 atm), even in the absence of open metal sites. The high percentage of open N-donor sites, coupled with the low framework density resulting from single-walled channels, is believed to contribute to the high uptake capacity., (© 2011 American Chemical Society)

The synthesis and photocatalytic properties of a heteropolyoxoniobate, K(10)[Nb(2)O(2)(H(2)O)(2)][SiNb(12)O(40)]·12H(2)O (1), are reported, revealing an important role of Zr(4+) additives in the crystallization. Compound 1 exhibits overall photocatalytic water splitting activity, and its photocatalytic activity is significantly higher than that of Na(10)[Nb(2)O(2)][SiNb(12)O(40)]·xH(2)O (2). Fluorescence lifetime measurements suggest that the enhanced photocatalytic activity of 1 likely results from a larger yield of longer-lived charge trapping states in 1 due to the coordination of one water molecule to the bridging Nb(5+), leading to highly unsymmetrical seven-coordinated Nb(5+) sites., (© 2011 American Chemical Society)