A sustainable approach to biobased porous organic frameworks and their composites

Porous organic frameworks (POFs) represent a diverse group of porous materials that have gained significant recognition in the last couple of decades. Their synthetic diversity and modular structure enable the construction of extended network structures with tailored pore architectures and chemical functionalities. Composed of functional organic monomers, the molecular building blocks of POFs are predominantly derived from fossil fuel-based feedstock, which poses a significant challenge to the long-term sustainability of these materials. Recent advances in the development of biobased POFs and their composites from renewable and natural precursors offer a promising route to carbon-neutral and cost-efficient synthesis of these framework materials. This perspective highlights emerging synthetic strategies for constructing biobased POFs and their composites from renewable organic monomers derived from biomass, such as lignin and cellulose. We outline opportunities and key challenges in the field, and propose a pathway for realizing a closed-loop system for fabricating the next generation of sustainable functional POF materials.