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Sculpting In-plane Fractal Porous Patterns in Two-Dimensional MOF Nanocrystals for Photoelectrocatalytic CO2
Soumen Dutta1,2, Akshay Gurumoorthi3, Shinbi Lee4
1Center for Nanospace-confined Chemical Reactions (NCCR), Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH), Pohang, 37673, South Korea.
Angewandte Chemie (International Ed. in English)
|April 18, 2023
Summary
Researchers engineered unique fractal pores in 2D MOF-5 nanocrystals using crystal-guided etching. This innovation enhances catalytic CO2 reduction by improving ReI-complex loading and charge transport for better activity and stability.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Nanotechnology
- Catalysis
Background:
- Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs) offer tunable porous structures.
- Controlling pore morphology is crucial for advanced applications.
- MOF-5's 2D nanocrystals provide a unique platform for precise structural modification.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a crystal lattice-guided etching method for creating specific pore patterns in 2D MOF-5.
- To investigate the formation of plus(+)-shaped and fractal-patterned pores.
- To enhance the performance of supported catalysts for photoelectrochemical CO2 reduction.
Main Methods:
- Utilizing few-nm-thin 2D MOF-5 nanocrystals with in-plane square lattices.
- Employing crystal lattice-guided wet-chemical etching along specific crystallographic directions (⟨100⟩ and ⟨110⟩).
- Optimizing a diffusion-limited etching process for high-yield, size-tunable fractal pores.
Main Results:
- Successfully generated plus(+)-shaped and fractal-patterned pores, differing from random spherical etches.
- Achieved high-yield, size-tunable fractal pores on the MOF surface.
- Demonstrated the potential for high loading of catalytic Rhenium(I) (ReI) complexes via amine-group modification.
Conclusions:
- The developed etching method precisely controls pore morphology in 2D MOF-5.
- Fractal pores facilitate efficient loading and exposure of ReI catalysts.
- The 2D MOF support structure with fractal pores enhances charge transport for improved photoelectrochemical CO2-to-CO reduction activity and stability.
