ZIF‐8 Derived Graphene‐Based Nitrogen‐Doped Porous Carbon Sheets as Highly Efficient and Durable Oxygen Reduction Electrocatalysts

Nitrogen‐doped carbon (NC) materials have been proposed as next‐generation oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) catalysts to significantly improve scalability and reduce costs, but these alternatives usually exhibit low activity and/or gradual deactivation during use. Here, we develop new 2D sandwich‐like zeolitic imidazolate framework (ZIF) derived graphene‐based nitrogen‐doped porous carbon sheets (GNPCSs) obtained by in situ growing ZIF on graphene oxide (GO). Compared to commercial Pt/C catalyst, the GNPCSs show comparable onset potential, higher current density, and especially an excellent tolerance to methanol and superior durability in the ORR. Those properties might be attributed to a synergistic effect between NC and graphene with regard to structure and composition. Furthermore, higher open‐circuit voltage and power density are obtained in direct methanol fuel cells.     

Cobalt Phenanthroline–Indole Macrocycles as Highly Active Electrocatalysts for Oxygen Reduction

The replacement of scarce and expensive platinum species poses a challenge in fuel‐cell development. The design and synthesis of a novel type of Co^II–N₄ macrocyclic complex, [CoN₄], based on the phenanthroline–indole macrocyclic ligand (PIM) is reported. This unique ligand allows the formation of mono‐ and dinuclear complexes with defined active sites that facilitate the direct four‐electron reduction of oxygen. Electrochemical measurements revealed that the [CoN₄]/C (20 wt %) catalysts have a high activity and long‐term stability for the oxygen‐reduction reaction (ORR) under alkaline conditions, similar to the Pt/C catalyst. These structurally well‐defined complexes represent a nonprecious alternative to platinum species for future fuel‐cell applications.     

Porous Molybdenum‐Based Hybrid Catalysts for Highly Efficient Hydrogen Evolution

We have synthesized a porous Mo‐based composite obtained from a polyoxometalate‐based metal–organic framework and graphene oxide (POMOFs/GO) using a simple one‐pot method. The MoO₂@PC‐RGO hybrid material derived from the POMOFs/GO composite is prepared at a relatively low carbonization temperature, which presents a superior activity for the hydrogen‐evolution reaction (HER) in acidic media owing to the synergistic effects among highly dispersive MoO₂ particles, phosphorus‐doped porous carbon, and RGO substrates. MoO₂@PC‐RGO exhibits a very positive onset potential close to that of 20 % Pt/C, low Tafel slope of 41 mV dec^?1, high exchange current density of 4.8×10^?4 A cm^?2, and remarkable long‐term cycle stability. It is one of the best high‐performance catalysts among the reported nonprecious metal catalysts for HER to date.     

Copper–Organic Framework Fabricated with CuS Nanoparticles: Synthesis,Electrical Conductivity,and Electrocatalytic Activities for Oxygen Reduction Reaction

To apply electrically nonconductive metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) in an electrocatalytic oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), we have developed a new method for fabricating various amounts of CuS nanoparticles (nano‐CuS) in/on a 3D Cu–MOF, [Cu₃(BTC)₂?(H₂O)₃] (BTC=1,3,5‐benzenetricarboxylate). As the amount of nano‐CuS increases in the composite, the electrical conductivity increases exponentially by up to circa 10⁹‐fold, while porosity decreases, compared with that of the pristine Cu‐MOF. The composites, nano‐CuS(x wt %)@Cu‐BTC, exhibit significantly higher electrocatalytic ORR activities than Cu‐BTC or nano‐CuS in an alkaline solution. The onset potential, electron transfer number, and kinetic current density increase when the electrical conductivity of the material increases but decrease when the material has a poor porosity, which shows that the two factors should be finely tuned by the amount of nano‐CuS for ORR application. Of these materials, CuS(28 wt %)@Cu‐BTC exhibits the best activity, showing the onset potential of 0.91 V vs. RHE, quasi‐four‐electron transfer pathway, and a kinetic current density of 11.3 mA cm^?2 at 0.55 V vs. RHE.     

Copper‐Modified Covalent Triazine Frameworks as Non‐Noble‐Metal Electrocatalysts for Oxygen Reduction

The electrochemical oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is an important cathode reaction of various types of fuel cells. The development of electrocatalysts composed only of abundant elements is a key goal because currently only platinum is a suitable catalyst for ORR. Herein, we synthesized copper‐modified covalent triazine frameworks (CTF) hybridized with carbon nanoparticles (Cu‐CTF/CPs) as efficient electrocatalysts for the ORR in neutral solutions. The ORR onset potential of the synthesized Cu‐CTF/CP was 810 mV versus the reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE; pH 7), the highest reported value at neutral pH for synthetic Cu‐based electrocatalysts. Cu‐CTF/CP also displayed higher stability than a Cu‐based molecular complex at neutral pH during the ORR, a property that was likely as a result of the covalently cross‐linked structure of CTF. This work may provide a new platform for the synthesis of durable non‐noble‐metal electrocatalysts for various target reactions.     

Metal–Organic Frameworks for Oxygen Storage

We present a systematic study of metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) for the storage of oxygen. The study starts with grand canonical Monte Carlo simulations on a suite of 10 000 MOFs for the adsorption of oxygen. From these data, the MOFs were down selected to the prime candidates of HKUST‐1 (Cu‐BTC) and NU‐125, both with coordinatively unsaturated Cu sites. Oxygen isotherms up to 30 bar were measured at multiple temperatures to determine the isosteric heat of adsorption for oxygen on each MOF by fitting to a Toth isotherm model. High pressure (up to 140 bar) oxygen isotherms were measured for HKUST‐1 and NU‐125 to determine the working capacity of each MOF. Compared to the zeolite NaX and Norit activated carbon, NU‐125 has an increased excess capacity for oxygen of 237 % and 98 %, respectively. These materials could ultimately prove useful for oxygen storage in medical, military, and aerospace applications.     

Undulated 2D Covalent Organic Frameworks Based on Bowl‐Shaped Cyclotricatechylene

Two 2D wavy hexagonal hexahydroxyl cyclotricatechylene (CTC) based COFs, CTC‐COF‐2 and CTC‐COF‐3 were synthesized through solvothermal reaction. The bowl‐shaped conformation caused CTC skeletons packed in a columnar manner with the same oriented units, thus forming an undulated structure. The gas adsorption properties of CTC‐COFs were investigated, which show the potential application abilities in hydrogen storage of CTC‐COFs. The introduction of pyrene into CTC‐COF‐3 makes it a potential semiconducting π‐conjugated material.     

Synthesis of Nanoporous Carbon–Cobalt‐Oxide Hybrid Electrocatalysts by Thermal Conversion of Metal–Organic Frameworks

Nanoporous carbon–cobalt‐oxide hybrid materials are prepared by a simple, two‐step, thermal conversion of a cobalt‐based metal–organic framework (zeolitic imidazolate framework‐9, ZIF‐9). ZIF‐9 is carbonized in an inert atmosphere to form nanoporous carbon–metallic‐cobalt materials, followed by the subsequent thermal oxidation in air, yielding nanoporous carbon–cobalt‐oxide hybrids. The resulting hybrid materials are evaluated as electrocatalysts for the oxygen‐reduction reaction (ORR) and the oxygen‐evolution reaction (OER) in a KOH electrolyte solution. The hybrid materials exhibit similar catalytic activity in the ORR to the benchmark, commercial, Pt/carbon black catalyst, and show better catalytic activity for the OER than the Pt‐based catalyst.     

Zeolitic Imidazolate Framework (ZIF)‐Derived,Hollow‐Core,Nitrogen‐Doped Carbon Nanostructures for Oxygen‐Reduction Reactions in PEFCs

The facile synthesis of a porous carbon material that is doped with iron‐coordinated nitrogen active sites (FeNC‐70) is demonstrated by following an inexpensive synthetic pathway with a zeolitic imidazolate framework (ZIF‐70) as a template. To emphasize the possibility of tuning the porosity and surface area of the resulting carbon materials based on the structure of the parent ZIF, two other ZIFs, that is, ZIF‐68 and ZIF‐69, are also synthesized. The resulting active carbon material that is derived from ZIF‐70, that is, FeNC‐70, exhibits the highest BET surface area of 262 m² g^?1 compared to the active carbon materials that are derived from ZIF‐68 and ZIF‐69. The HR‐TEM images of FeNC‐70 show that the carbon particles have a bimodal structure that is composed of a spherical macroscopic pore (about 200 nm) and a mesoporous shell. X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) reveals the presence of Fe‐N‐C moieties, which are the primary active sites for the oxygen‐reduction reaction (ORR). Quantitative estimation by using EDAX analysis reveals a nitrogen content of 14.5 wt. %, along with trace amounts of iron (0.1 wt. %), in the active FeNC‐70 catalyst. This active porous carbon material, which is enriched with Fe‐N‐C moieties, reduces the oxygen molecule with an onset potential at 0.80 V versus NHE through a pathway that involves 3.3–3.8 e^? under acidic conditions, which is much closer to the favored 4 e^? pathway for the ORR. The onset potential of FeNC‐70 is significantly higher than those of its counterparts (FeNC‐68 and FeNC‐69) and of other reported systems. The FeNC‐based systems also exhibit much‐higher tolerance towards MeOH oxidation and electrochemical stability during an accelerated durability test (ADT). Electrochemical analysis and structural characterizations predict that the active sites for the ORR are most likely to be the in situ generated N? FeN₂₊₂/C moieties, which are distributed along the carbon framework.     

Synthesis of Luminescent Covalent–Organic Polymers for Detecting Nitroaromatic Explosives and Small Organic Molecules

Three porous luminescent covalent‐‐organic polymers (COPs) have been synthesized through self‐polycondensation of the monomers of tris(4‐bromophenyl)amine, 1,3,5‐tris(4‐bromophenyl)benzene, and 2,4,6‐tris‐(4‐bromo‐phenyl)‐[1,3,5]triazine by using Ni‐catalyzed Yamamoto reaction. All the COP materials possess not only high Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) specific surface area of about 2000 m² g⁻¹, high hydrothermal stability, but also graphene‐like layer texture. Interestingly, COP‐3 and COP‐4 show very fast responses and high sensitivity to the nitroaromatic explosives, and also high selectivity for tracing picric acid (PA) and 2,4,6‐trinitrotoluene (TNT) at low concentration (<1 ppm). In short, the COPs may be a new kind of material for detecting explosives and small organic molecules.     

Precision Construction of 2D Heteropore Covalent Organic Frameworks by a Multiple‐Linking‐Site Strategy

Integrating different kinds of pores into one covalent organic framework (COF) endows it with hierarchical porosity and thus generates a member of a new class of COFs, namely, heteropore COFs. Whereas the construction of COFs with homoporosity has already been well developed, the fabrication of heteropore COFs still faces great challenges. Although two strategies have recently been developed to successfully construct heteropore COFs from noncyclic building blocks, they suffer from the generation of COF isomers, which decreases the predictability and controllability of construction of this type of reticular materials. In this work, this drawback was overcome by a multiple‐linking‐site strategy that offers precision construction of heteropore COFs containing two kinds of hexagonal pores with different shapes and sizes. This strategy was developed by designing a building block in which double linking sites are introduced at each branch of a C₃‐symmetric skeleton, the most widely used scaffold to construct COFs with homogeneous porosity. This design provides a general way to precisely construct heteropore COFs without formation of isomers. Furthermore, the as‐prepared heteropore COFs have hollow‐spherical morphology, which has rarely been observed for COFs, and an uncommon staggered AB stacking was observed for the layers of the 2D heteropore COFs.     

Synthesis of Supported Ultrafine Non‐noble Subnanometer‐Scale Metal Particles Derived from Metal–Organic Frameworks as Highly Efficient Heterogeneous Catalysts

The properties of supported non‐noble metal particles with a size of less than 1 nm are unknown because their synthesis is a challenge. A strategy has now been created to immobilize ultrafine non‐noble metal particles on supports using metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) as metal precursors. Ni/SiO₂ and Co/SiO₂ catalysts were synthesized with an average metal particle size of 0.9 nm. The metal nanoparticles were immobilized uniformly on the support with a metal loading of about 20 wt %. Interestingly, the ultrafine non‐noble metal particles exhibited very high activity for liquid‐phase hydrogenation of benzene to cyclohexane even at 80 °C, while Ni/SiO₂ with larger Ni particles fabricated by a conventional method was not active under the same conditions.     

Hierarchical Integration of Photosensitizing Metal–Organic Frameworks and Nickel‐Containing Polyoxometalates for Efficient Visible‐Light‐Driven Hydrogen Evolution

Metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) provide a tunable platform for hierarchically integrating multiple components to effect synergistic functions that cannot be achieved in solution. Here we report the encapsulation of a Ni‐containing polyoxometalate (POM) [Ni₄(H₂O)₂(PW₉O₃₄)₂]^10? ( Ni₄P₂ ) into two highly stable and porous phosphorescent MOFs. The proximity of Ni₄P₂ to multiple photosensitizers in Ni₄P₂ @MOF allows for facile multi‐electron transfer to enable efficient visible‐light‐driven hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) with turnover numbers as high as 1476. Photophysical and electrochemical studies established the oxidative quenching of the excited photosensitizer by Ni₄P₂ as the initiating step of HER and explained the drastic catalytic activity difference of the two POM@MOFs. Our work shows that POM@MOF assemblies not only provide a tunable platform for designing highly effective photocatalytic HER catalysts but also facilitate detailed mechanistic understanding of HER processes.     

A Stable Microporous Mixed‐Metal Metal–Organic Framework with Highly Active Cu2+ Sites for Efficient Cross‐Dehydrogenative Coupling Reactions

Two metalloporphyrin octacarboxylates were used to link copper(II) nodes for the formation of two novel porous mixed‐metal metal–organic frameworks (M′MOFs) containing nanopore cages (2.1 nm in diameter) or nanotubular channels (1.5 nm in diameter). The highly active Cu²⁺ sites on the nanotubular surfaces of the stable porous M′MOF ZJU‐22 , stabilized by three‐connected nets, lead to the superior catalytic activity for the cross‐dehydrogenative coupling (CDC) reaction.     

Continuous‐Flow Microwave Synthesis of Metal–Organic Frameworks: A Highly Efficient Method for Large‐Scale Production

Metal–organic frameworks are having a tremendous impact on novel strategic applications, with prospective employment in industrially relevant processes. The development of such processes is strictly dependent on the ability to generate materials with high yield efficiency and production rate. We report a versatile and highly efficient method for synthesis of metal–organic frameworks in large quantities using continuous flow processing under microwave irradiation. Benchmark materials such as UiO‐66, MIL‐53(Al), and HKUST‐1 were obtained with remarkable mass, space–time yields, and often using stoichiometric amounts of reactants. In the case of UiO‐66 and MIL‐53(Al), we attained unprecedented space–time yields far greater than those reported previously. All of the syntheses were successfully extended to multi‐gram high quality products in a matter of minutes, proving the effectiveness of continuous flow microwave technology for the large scale production of metal–organic frameworks.