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Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are crystalline microporous materials with tunable chemical and physical properties. By combining various metal clusters with different interconnecting organic linkers, the pore structure, crystallinity, as well as the surface properties can be modified. In the present work, modification of the organic linker molecules is utilized to synthesize CAU-10 type MOFs with variable affinity of the pore surface to water. In principle, this should influence the accessibility of the pores for water vapor and therefore offer a tool to control its sorption properties. For a deeper understanding we studied the water sorption characteristics and compared the results to the conductive and dielectric properties studied by impedance spectroscopy. Spectra in a wide frequency range from 1 mHz to 1 MHz were recorded. Data analysis is performed using the Havriliak-Negami model. The MOFs are also tested as sensitive layers for capacitive humidity sensing by correlating the change in permittivity of the materials with the amount of physisorbed water. Such an MOF-based sensor was tested with respect to environmental monitoring and compared to a commonly used commercial humidity sensor.

A new hydrothermally stable Al polycarboxylate metal-organic framework (MOF) based on a heteroatom bio-derived aromatic spacer is designed through a template-free green synthesis process. It appears that in some test conditions this MOF outperforms the heat reallocation performances of commercial SAPO-34., (© 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)

The photochemistry of two isostructural metal-organic frameworks based on 5-amino/5-formamidoisophthalate (CAU-10-NH2 /NHCHO) or mixed-linker 5-amino/5-formamido- and 5-nitroisophthalate (CAU-10-NO2 /NH2 /NHCHO) has been studied using laser flash photolysis. 355 nm excitation of CAU-10-NH2 /NHCHO leads to a transient absorption spectrum characterized by a broad continuous absorption from 380 to 800 nm that was attributed to the presence of holes (440 nm) and electrons (600 nm) based on iPrOH and N2 O quenching, respectively. In contrast, no transients were observed for the isostructural mixed-linker CAU-10-NO2 /NH2 /NHCHO, data that is compatible with the uniform distribution of linkers 5-amino/5-formamido/5-nitroisophthalate as charge-transfer complex pairs. The same effect of quenching of 5-aminoisophthalate transients by 5-nitroisophthalate was also observed in aqueous solution (pH 9) but with much lower strength. Using a simple Stern-Volmer formalism allowed the estimation of the interaction of 5-aminoisophthalate with 5-nitroisophthalate in MOF to be 5.2×10(4) times stronger than in the aqueous phase., (© 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)

High-throughput reactions of aqueous solutions of 4-(phosphonomethyl)benzoic acid (H3PMBC) with metal salts were carried out using, for the first time, ultrasonication as well as the previously described conventional heating. On screening the influence of 12 divalent metal ions, two new compounds ([Ca(H2O)2(H2PMBC)2] and [Ni(H2O)4(H2PMBC)2]) were discovered. Their formation fields were established by systematically studying the systems Ni(2+) or Ca(2+)/H3PMBC/KOH. Both compounds crystallise in the space group P1[combining macron] ([Ca(H2O)2(H2PMBC)2]: a = 4.6806(9) Å, b = 6.1340(12) Å, c = 17.932(4) Å, α = 83.84(3)°, β = 89.03(3)°, γ = 85.65(3)°; [Ni(H2O)4(H2PMBC)2]: a = 4.7713(10) Å, b = 6.8621(14) Å, c = 16.598(3) Å, α = 83.42(3)°, β = 89.71(3)°, γ = 83.50(3)°) and contain MO6-octahedra linked to form chains by hydrogen bonded (H2PMBC(-))2-dimers formed between the carboxylate groups. The formation of [Ni(H2O)4(H2PMBC)2] was studied by in situ EDXRD and in situ IR spectroscopy. The increased formation rate of [Ni(H2O)4(H2PMBC)2] under ultrasonic irradiation as compared to conventional heating could be unequivocally attributed to the faster dissolution of the ligand H3PMBC.

The structure of the title polymer, }[Mg(C6H14N2O6P2)(H2O)4]·0.5H2O} n , is based on centrosymmetric MgO6 octahedra, which are linked by [(piperazine-1,4-diium-1,4-di-yl)bis-(methyl-ene)]di-phospho-nate ligands, forming chains parallel to [1-1-1]. These chains are connected via hydrogen bonds primarily formed between the phospho-nate groups and water mol-ecules. The latter constitute four of the corners of the MgO6 polyhedra and bind to the O atoms of the phospho-nate groups of neighbouring chains. The lattice water molecule is disordered around an inversion centre, exhibiting an occupancy of 0.25.

A systematic study was carried out to investigate the influence of linker geometry, metal ionic radius as well as the nature of the counter ions on the structure formation of metal tetraphosphonates. Two tetraphosphonic acids p- and m-(H2O3PCH2)2N-CH2-C6H4-CH2-N(CH2PO3H2)2, six metal ions (Ca(2+), Mn(2+), Co(2+), Ni(2+), Zn(2+), and Cd(2+)) and two different counter ions (Cl(-) and NO3(-)) were employed using high throughput methods. Microwave (MW)-assisted heating led to the discovery of ten new metal-phosphonates which crystallize in three different crystal structures. The combination of direct methods and force field calculations allowed us to establish the crystal structures. The counter ion and the ionic radii of the metal ions have a profound influence on the crystallinity and the formed crystal structure. All compounds were characterized in detail by thermogravimetric analyses, IR spectroscopy and magnetic susceptibility measurements. The proton conductivity of two selected compounds is also reported.

The metal–organic framework compound [Al(OH)(BDC-Br)] (1) (BDC-Br2− = 5-bromo-1,3-benzenedicarboxylate) denoted CAU-10-Br was synthesised under solvothermal reaction conditions. Its structure was successfully refined by Rietveld methods. The framework is based on the connection of infinite helical chains of cis-corner-sharing AlO6-polyhedra via BDC-Br2− ions. Thus non-intersecting parallel channels are formed, each periodically varying in diameter between 1.1 and 6.6 Å. Nevertheless 1 adsorbs CO2 at 298 K, while it is non-porous towards H2 and N2 at 77 K. Employing high-throughput (HT) methods we identified synthesis conditions that lead to the formation of mixed-linker MOFs with CAU-10 topology. Starting with a molar ratio H2BDC:H2BDC-Br = 3:1 we established a synthesis procedure for the partially bromo-functionalised mixed-linker-MOF [Al(OH)(BDC)0.8(BDC-Br)0.2] (2) denoted as CAU-10-H/Br. Starting with a molar ratio H2BDC-NH2:H2BDC-NO2 = 1:1 the partially NO2- and NH2-functionalised mixed-linker MOF [Al(OH)(BDC-NO2)0.55(BDC-NH2)0.23(BDC-NHCHO)0.22] (3) denoted as CAU-10-NO2/NH2 was synthesised, in which the NH2-groups were found to be partially formylated. The partial bromo-functionalisation in CAU-10-H/Br (2) leads to a lower sorption capacity in comparison with the parent structure CAU-10-H, while the pore accessibility is comparable. The incorporation of NO2-, NH2- and NHCHO-groups in CAU-10-NO2/NH2 (3) does not only affect the accessibility of the pores for N2, but results also in an increased capacity for H2 and CO2 in comparison with the parent structure CAU-10-NO2. The reproducibility of the synthesis procedures was tested regarding the composition of the MOFs and the resulting gas sorption properties. In 2 a molar fraction of (BDC)2− = 80 ± 2% is found, while in 3 a molar fraction of (BDC-NO2)2− = 55 ± 2% is observed. Starting from the molar ratio H2BDC:H2BDC-CH3 = 1:1 mixed linker MOFs denoted as CAU-10-H/CH3 (4) were also obtained. In contrast to 2 and 3 the molar ratios of BDC2−/BDC-CH32− and especially the sorption properties differ substantially for every batch. The compounds were further characterised by X-ray powder diffraction, thermogravimetric/elemental analysis, NMR/Vis/IR-spectroscopy, and gas sorption measurements.

The new Al-based metal-organic framework [Al(13)(OH)(27)(H(2)O)(6)(BDC-NH(2))(3)Cl(6)(C(3)H(7)OH)(6)] denoted CAU-6 (CAU = Christian-Albrechts-Universität) was solvothermally synthesized in 2-propanol and was thoroughly characterized. The framework structure exhibits a unique column-shaped inorganic building unit, which is based on stacked, corner-sharing Al(13)-clusters. The compound exhibits unprecedented hydrophilicity for metal-organic frameworks.

For the first time an azo functionality was covalently introduced into a MOF by post-synthetic modification. The reaction of Cr-MIL-101-NH(2) with p-phenylazobenzoylchloride (1) and 4-(phenylazo)phenylisocyanate (2) as the reactants led to the compounds Cr-MIL-101_amide and Cr-MIL-101_urea, with the azo groups protruding into the mesoporous cages. XRPD and N(2) sorption measurements confirm the intactness of the framework and the successful covalent modification was proven by IR- and NMR-spectroscopy. Furthermore, cis/trans isomerisation upon irradiation with light was demonstrated by UV/Vis spectroscopy. More distinct changes in the UV/Vis spectra were observed for Cr-MIL-101_amide compared to Cr-MIL-101_urea, while the degree of functionalization, i.e. the number of reacted NH(2)-groups, seems to have a less pronounced effect. The variation of the sorption properties due to the cis/trans isomerisation was proven by methane adsorption measurements.

A new family of Al-based MOFs denoted as CAU-3 (CAU = Christian-Albrechts-Universität) was discovered in the solvothermal system Al(3+)/aryldicarboxylic acid/NaOH/methanol by applying high-throughput-methods. The three compounds reported in this article [Al(2)(OCH(3))(4)BDC], [Al(2)(OCH(3))(4)BDC-NH(2)] and[Al(2)(OCH(3))(4)NDC] (BDC = 1,4-benzenedicarboxylate; NDC = 2,6-naphtalenedicarboxylate) are all based on the same unprecedented inorganic building unit [Al(12)(OCH(3))(24)](12+), which is a dodecameric cyclic aluminium-methanolate-cluster. The material CAU-3-NDC was found to exhibit the highest surface area as well as the highest micropore volume of all Al-based MOFs reported until now.

With the high-throughput (HT) methodology, the bifunctional aminoalkylphosphonic acids (AAPA) linker molecules 2-aminoethyl- (AEPA), 3-aminopropyl- (APPA), and 4-aminobutylphosphonic acid (ABPA) [HO(3)P-C(n)H(2n)-NH(2) (n = 2-4)] and zinc nitrate were used to synthesize new metal phosphonates in order to investigate the influence of the alkyl chain length on the structure formation. The systematic investigations led to one known (ZnO(3)PC(2)H(4)NH(2)) and six new compounds: one using AEPA, three using APPA, and two using ABPA. The crystal structures of five compounds were determined by single crystal X-ray diffraction, using X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD) data as well as structure modeling employing force field methods. For compound 1, Zn(O(3)P-C(2)H(4)-NH(3))(NO(3))(H(2)O) (monoclinic, Cc, a = 4.799(1) Å, b = 29.342(6) Å, c = 5.631(1) Å, β = 91.59(3)°, V = 792.7(3) Å(3), Z = 4), and compound 2, Zn(2)(OH)(O(3)P-C(3)H(6)-NH(3))(NO(3)) (monoclinic, P2/c, a = 12.158(2) Å, b = 5.0315(10) Å, c = 13.952(3) Å, β = 113.23(3)°, V = 784.3(3) Å(3), Z = 2), the structures were determined using single crystal X-ray diffraction data. The crystal structures of [Zn(O(3)P-C(3)H(6)-NH(2))]·H(2)O (3) (monoclinic, P2(1)/c, a = 9.094(2) Å, b = 5.0118(7) Å, c = 16.067(4) Å, β = 90.38(2)°, V = 732.3(2) Å(3), Z = 4) and Zn(O(3)P-C(4)H(8)-NH(2)) (5) (monoclinic, P2(1)/c, a = 8.570(7) Å, b = 8.378(4) Å, c = 9.902(6) Å, β = 90.94(5)°, V = 710.9(8) Å(3), Z = 4) were determined using XRPD data. The structural model for compound 6, Zn(O(3)P-C(4)H(8)-NH(3))(NO(3))(H(2)O), was established using lattice parameters from XRPD data and following crystal structure modeling employing force field methods. The structures depend strongly on the alkyl chain length n. For n = 2 and 4 isoreticular compounds are observed, while n = 3 leads to new structures. Larger amounts of all compounds were obtained employing scale-up syntheses in a conventional oven as well as in a microwave reactor system. In addition, in situ energy dispersive X-ray diffraction (EDXRD) experiments at 130 °C were performed at beamline F3 at HASYLAB, DESY, Hamburg, to investigate the formation of compounds 2 and 3 as well as the phase transformation of 2 into 3 upon addition of NaOH. All compounds were characterized in detail using X-ray powder diffraction, IR/Raman spectroscopy, and thermogravimetric and elemental analysis.

In the search of Ni based metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) containing paddle-wheel type building units, three chemical systems Ni(2+)/H(n)L/base/solvent with H(n)L = H(3)BTC (1,3,5-benzenetricarboxylic acid), H(3)BTB (4,4',4'',-benzene-1,3,5-triyl-tris(benzoic acid)), and H(2)BDC (terephthalic acid) were investigated using high-throughput (HT) methods. In addition to the conventional heating, for the first time HT microwave assisted synthesis of MOFs was carried out. Six new compounds were discovered, and their fields of formation were established. In the first system, H(3)BTC was employed and a comprehensive HT-screening of compositional and process parameters was conducted. The synthesis condition for the Ni paddle-wheel unit was determined and two compounds [Ni(3)(BTC)(2)(Me(2)NH)(3)]·(DMF)(4)(H(2)O)(4) (1a) and [Ni(6)(BTC)(2)(DMF)(6)(HCOO)(6)] (1b) were discovered (Me(2)NH = dimethylamine, DMF = dimethylformamide). In the second system, the use of the extended tritopic linker H(3)BTB and the synthesis conditions for the paddle-wheel units led to the porous MOF, [Ni(3)(BTB)(2)(2-MeIm)(1.5)(H(2)O)(1.5)]·(DMF)(9)(H(2)O)(6.5) (2), (2-MeIm = 2-methylimidazole). This compound shows a selective adsorption of H(2)O and H(2) with a strong hysteresis. In the third system, H(2)BDC was used, and the base (DABCO) was incorporated as a bridging ligand into all structures. Thus, two pillared layered porous MOFs [Ni(2)(BDC)(2)(DABCO)]·(DMF)(4)(H(2)O)(1.5) (3a) and [Ni(2)(BDC)(2)(DABCO)]·(DMF)(4)(H(2)O)(4) (3b) as well as a layered compound [Ni(BDC)(DABCO)]·(DMF)(1.5)(H(2)O)(2) (3c) were isolated. The 3a and 3b polymorphs of the [Ni(2)(BDC)(2)(DABCO)] framework can be selectively synthesized. The combination of microwave assisted heating, low overall concentration, stirring of the reaction mixtures, and an excess of DABCO yields a highly crystalline pure phase of 3b. The fields of formation of all compounds were established, and scale-up was successfully performed for 1b, 2, 3a, 3b, and 3c. All compounds were structurally characterized. In addition to IR, elemental and TG analyses, gas and vapor sorption experiments were carried out., (© 2011 American Chemical Society)

Hydro-thermal reaction involving zinc nitrate hexa-hydrate, tris-odium benzene-1,3,5-tricarboxyl-ate (Na(3)BTC) and 2-methyl-imidazole (2-MeImH) yielded the title compound, [Zn(2)(C(9)H(3)O(6))(C(4)H(5)N(2))(C(4)H(6)N(2))(3)]. In this mixed-ligand metal-organic compound, Zn(2+) ions are coordinated by N atoms from 2-MeImH mol-ecules and (2-MeIm)(-) ions, as well as by O atoms from (BTC)(3-) ions. This results in two different distorted tetra-hedra, viz. ZnN(3)O and ZnN(2)O(2). These tetra-hedra are inter-connected via (BTC)(3-) ions and N:N'-bridging (2-MeIm)(-) ions, thus forming a layered structure in the bc plane. Hydrogen bonds between the O atoms of carboxyl-ate ions and NH groups of 2-MeImH ligands link the layers into a three-dimensional structure.

Aluminium dihydroxyterephthalate [Al(8)(OH)(4)(OCH(3))(8)(BDC(OH)(2))(6)]⋅x H(2)O (denoted CAU-1-(OH)(2)) was synthesized under solvothermal conditions and characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, IR spectroscopy, sorption measurements, as well as thermogravimetric and elemental analysis. CAU-1-(OH)(2) is isoreticular to CAU-1 and its pores are lined with OH groups. It is stable under ambient conditions and in water, and it exhibits permanent porosity and two types of cavities with effective diameters of approximately 1 and 0.45 nm. The crystallization of CAU-1-(OH)(2) was studied by in situ energy-dispersive X-ray diffraction (EDXRD) experiments in the 120-145 °C temperature range. Two heating methods-conventional and microwave-were investigated. The latter leads to shorter induction periods as well as shorter reaction times. Whereas CAU-1-(OH)(2) is formed at all investigated temperatures using conventional heating, it is only observed below 130 °C using microwave heating. The calculation of the activation energy of the crystallization of CAU-1-(OH)(2) exhibits similar values for microwave and conventional synthesis., (Copyright © 2011 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)

A new porous metal-organic framework (MOF)-type aluminum pyromellitate (MIL-121 or Al(OH)[H(2)btec]·(guest), (guest = H(2)O, H(4)btec = pyromellitic acid) has been isolated by using a high-throughput synthesis method under hydrothermal conditions. Its structure was determined from powder X-ray diffraction analysis using synchrotron radiation (Soleil, France) and exhibits a network closely related to that of the MIL-53 series. It is a three-dimensional (3D) framework containing one-dimensional (1D) channels delimited by infinite trans-connected aluminum-centered octahedra AlO(4)(OH)(2) linked through the pyromellitate ligand. Here the organic ligand acts as tetradendate linker via two of the carboxylate groups. The two others remain non-bonded in their protonated form, and this constitutes a rare case of the occurrence of both bonding and non-bonding organic functionalities of the MOF family. The non-coordinated -COOH groups points toward the channels to get them an open form configuration. Within the tunnels are located unreacted pyromellitic acid and water species, which are evacuated upon heating, and a porous MIL-121 phase is obtained with a Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area of 162 m(2) g(-1). MIL-121 has been characterized by IR, thermogravimetry (TG) analyses, and solid state NMR spectroscopy employing a couple of two-dimensional (2D) techniques such as (1)H-(1)H SQ-DQ BABA, (1)H-(1)H SQ-SQ RFDR, (27)Al{(1)H} CPHETCOR and (27)Al MQMAS.

The oriented growth of the amino-functionalized metal-organic framework [Al4(OH)2(OCH3)4(H2N-bdc)3].xH2O (named CAU-1; CAU = Christian-Albrechts-University) on different self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) is reported. Gold substrates were modified with both 16-mercaptohexadecanol and 16-mercaptohexadecanoic acid SAMs and immersed in a pre-treated crystallization solution. The different terminal functionalities and synthesis parameters result in the direct surface growth of CAU-1 crystals along preferred crystallographic orientations. While for the OH-terminated SAMs a preferential attachment of the CAU-1 crystals either in [011] or [002] direction is observed (depending on the reaction conditions), highly oriented crystal growth in [002] orientation was obtained on the carboxylic acid functionalized SAMs.

Large, larger, ... Replacement of 1,4-benzenedicarboxylate by 2,6-naphthalenedicarboxylate in the MIL-101 structure leads to an isoreticular mesoporous framework containing cages with diameters of 39 and 46 A. High-throughput methods are employed to determine appropriate reaction conditions. The microcrystalline compound is characterized by molecular simulation techniques, powder X-ray diffraction, N(2)-sorption, and TEM investigations.

Al together now! A new stable aluminum aminoterephthalate system contains octameric building blocks that are connected by organic linkers to form a 12-connected net (see picture). The structure adopts a cubic centered packing motive in which octameric units replace individual atoms, thus forming distorted octahedral (red sphere) and tetrahedral cages (green spheres) with effective accessible diameters of 1 and 0.45 nm, respectively.

The crystal structure of the title compound, [Cu(2)(C(2)H(4)O(6)PS)(OH)(H(2)O)(2)]·3H(2)O, consists of two Cu(2+) ions, one (O(3)PC(2)H(4)SO(3))(3-) ion and one OH(-) ion, as well as five water mol-ecules, two of which are coordinated to Cu(2+). The Cu(2+) ions are coordinated by six O atoms. The CuO(6) polyhedra are connected by μ- and μ(3)-O atoms into zigzag chains along the b axis. These chains are further connected by -CH(2)CH(2)- groups to form layers, in turn building a three-dimensional framework via hydrogen bonding.

The crystal structure of the title compound, {[Er(2)(C(2)H(4)O(6)PS)(OH)(3)(H(2)O)]·H(2)O}(n), consists of two Er(3+) ions, one (C(2)H(4)O(6)PS)(3-) ion, three OH(-) ions, and two water mol-ecule. The Er(3+) ions form ErO(8) polyhedra., which are connected by μ- and μ(3)-O atoms. Thus, inorganic Er-O-Er layers of edge- and face-sharing polyhedra are observed. Whereas most often in metal phosphono-sulfonates the organic linker bridges adjacent layers, in the title compound, the (O(3)PC(2)H(4)SO(3))(3-) anion is only connected to one Er-O-Er layer. Short interatomic O⋯O distances [2.898 (8), 2.997 (14) and 2.768 (10) Å] indicate hydrogen bonding between the layers. The noncoordinated water mol-ecules are located between the layers.

A new procedure for the preparation of high aspect ratio Au nanowires utilizing gold electroless reduction in the hexagonally ordered, thiol-modified nanosized channels of the SBA-15 material is reported. Two different Au precursors were adsorbed onto pedant thiol groups, covalently bonded to the mesoporous silica surface, and used as seeds to grow extended Au nanostructures by treatment in Au electroless reduction bath. It is shown that the dimensions and the assembly of the Au seeds are important parameters for the subsequent electroless reduction process. The [AuCl4]- ions complexed to the TOAB molecules assembled on the thiol-modified mesoporous surface of the SBA-15 material are suitable precursors for the subsequent gold electroless reduction. The resulting structures are several micrometer long Au nanowires with uniform diameters of about 5 nm, having large single-crystalline domains. The TEM results clearly show that the growth of the Au nanowires is templated by the channel structure of the SBA-15 material.