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Updated: Jan 28, 2026

Author Spotlight: Characterizing Porous Materials for Aiding the Development of Robust Metal-Organic Frameworks with Adsorption Behavior
Published on: March 8, 2024
Metal-organic frameworks for the adsorption of alkali metal ions
Xizhen Zhou1, Yujie Zhao1, Xudong Zhao1
1College of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Taiyuan University of Science and Technology, Taiyuan 030024, China. zhaoxd@tyust.edu.cn.
Abstract:
Highly efficient separation and recovery of alkali metal ions (e.g. lithium, sodium, potassium, rubidium, and cesium) from natural and artificial brines are urgent tasks because of the huge reserves of brines and their increasing demand in advanced industries. During the past twenty years, porous metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), with controllable channel structures and chemical micro-environments, have been exploited as new choices in the field of alkali metal ion adsorption and separation. This review focuses on the progress in MOFs and MOF-based adsorbents for the selective capture and co-adsorption of alkali metal ions. The adsorption performances of various MOFs were rationally assessed and compared based on their adsorption capacity, kinetics, selectivity, and regeneration. The mechanisms, including chelation, ion exchange, pore sieving, and electrostatic interaction, were systematically summarized from the perspectives of adsorption thermodynamics and diffusion dynamics. Finally, the current drawbacks and challenges were highlighted and future opportunities were proposed for designing highly efficient MOF-based adsorbents for the adsorption of alkali metal ions.
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