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Metal-Organic Frameworks
Chemistry In Pictures
Chemistry in Pictures: Look, don’t touch
by Alexandra Taylor
October 23, 2019
Credit: Ana Firmino
Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are compounds in which metal ions or clusters are coordinated to organic ligands in a way that forms three-dimensional networks. This MOF looks as soft as a powderpuff, but don’t be fooled. “It is actually quite the opposite,” says Ana Firmino. “This is a crystal with rough edges.” Firmino is a Young Researcher—the equivalent of a postdoc—at CICECO - Aveiro Institute of Materials. She synthesized the material, made up of Tb(III) metal ions connected to dicarboxylic acid ligands, and synthesized the ligands via a self-assembly reaction, using microwave radiation as the energy source. “I believe that MOFs, being hybrid materials, compose the bridge that joins organic and inorganic chemists,” Firmino says. This MOF could one day find use in photovoltaic cells.
Submitted by Ana Firmino
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Related C&EN Content:
Chemical & Engineering News
ISSN 0009-2347
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