Design and Synthesis of a Water-Stable Anionic Uranium-Based Metal-Organic Framework (MOF) with Ultra Large Pores

Abstract

Ionic metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are a subclass of porous materials that have the ability to incorporate different charged species in confined nanospace by ion-exchange. To date, however, very few examples combining mesoporosity and water stability have been realized in ionic MOF chemistry. Herein, we report the rational design and synthesis of a water-stable anionic mesoporous MOF based on uranium and featuring tbo-type topology. The resulting tbo MOF exhibits exceptionally large open cavities (3.9 nm) exceeding those of all known anionic MOFs. By supercritical CO2 activation, a record-high Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area (2100 m(2) g(-1) ) for actinide-based MOFs has been obtained. Most importantly, however, this new uranium-based MOF is water-stable and able to absorb positively charged ions selectively over negatively charged ones, enabling the efficient separation of organic dyes and biomolecules.

Keywords: enzyme separation; ion exchange; metal-organic frameworks; uranium; water-stable MOFs.