Imagine a material so porous that a single gram has the internal surface area of a football field, and so precise that it can sort molecules like a sieve sorts sand.
This describes metal-organic frameworks, crystalline porous materials transforming energy storage, environmental sustainability, and chemical processing.
Image Credit: Lynn Paeonia/Shutterstock.com
In 2025, the Nobel Prize in Chemistry honored Susumu Kitagawa, Richard Robson, and Omar M. Yaghi for pioneering a new way to build materials from metal nodes and organic linkers.1
Their work showed that these frameworks can be engineered with exceptionally large cavities that act as molecular sponge networks. This architecture enables precise gas diffusion, selective separation, and controlled reactivity.
The Nobel recognition emphasized both the structural innovation and the wide-ranging impact of MOFs in CO2 capture, H2 storage, atmospheric water harvesting, and purification of industrial air and water streams.
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MOFs, metal-organic frameworks, are crystalline materials formed by linking metal ions or clusters with organic molecules called linkers to create highly ordered 3D networks. The metal nodes serve as connection points, while the linkers bridge them to form interconnected pores at the molecular scale.
These pores can host gases, liquids, or other guest molecules, giving MOFs exceptionally high internal surface areas compared with conventional porous materials such as activated carbon or zeolites. Some frameworks are even flexible, allowing pores to expand or contract in response to external conditions.
This combination of structural precision, tunability, and high surface area makes MOFs versatile platforms for gas storage, separation, sensing, and catalysis.
Unique Properties of MOFs
MOFs display several remarkable characteristics that set them apart from traditional porous materials and make them attractive for industrial applications.
High Surface Area: Metal-organic frameworks have exceptionally large internal surface areas. For example, NU-109 and NU-110 MOFs possess around 7,000 m2/g. One kilogram of NU-110 contains enough internal surface to cover roughly seven square kilometers, or about one thousand football fields. 2
This enormous surface area can make MOFs far more effective than activated carbon for carbon dioxide capture and hydrogen storage.
Tunable Pore Size and Chemistry: By selecting different metals and linkers, MOFs can be designed with micropores, mesopores, or hierarchical pore networks. HKUST-1 has uniform micropores, while MIL-101 features large mesoporous cages that can host bulky molecules.
This tunability allows precise molecular separation and selective adsorption.
Functional Chemical Sites: Many MOFs contain open metal sites or reactive groups that enhance binding or catalysis.
MOF-74 has exposed metal centers that interact strongly with carbon dioxide, and UiO-66 can be modified with amino or sulfonic groups to improve catalytic activity or pollutant adsorption.
Modularity and Design Flexibility: They are built from predictable building blocks, allowing systematic tuning for specific applications. ZIF-8, with zinc nodes and imidazolate linkers, forms a stable framework suitable for gas separation.
Other MOFs can be redesigned by changing metals or linkers to optimize conductivity, stability, or chemical reactivity.
Applications
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Gas Storage and Separation
MOFs provide efficient gas uptake and selective separation due to their high surface area and tunable pore structures.
Defective Mg-MOF-74 with MgO5 vacancies shows strong hydrogen chemisorption, delivering 2.55 wt.% reversible H2 uptake at 160 °C and 81 bar with fast kinetics and stable cycling.3
A new family of tunable vanadium MOFs with pore sizes between 5-11 Å and surface areas of 820 to 2964 m2/g was reported in Advanced Materials in 2024, enabling selective adsorption of C2 and C3 hydrocarbons and supporting efficient separation.4
Drug Delivery Systems
MOFs can also act as efficient drug carriers with tunable pore size, high loading capacity, and controlled release. Stimuli-responsive MOFs enable site-specific targeting.5
Ultra-small Cu aspartate MOF nanodots were developed as targeted carriers for curcumin. They showed strong pH-responsive release (~60 % at pH 5.5 vs ~10% at pH 7.4) and high loading capacity (74 %).
Folic acid targeting promoted selective uptake in HeLa cells, significantly improving delivery and therapeutic efficacy compared with free curcumin.5
pH Responsive Cancer Therapy
Scientists have made use of MOF tunability to develop materials that can release drugs under acidic tumor conditions, enabling selective anticancer delivery and reducing systemic toxicity.
Published in the International Journal of Nanomaterials, a ZIF-8 MOF was used to encapsulate dihydroartemisinin for pH-triggered, tumor-selective drug release.
The nanocarriers released ~70 % DHA at pH 6.5 and only ~42 % at pH 7.4, demonstrating improved targeting and reduced off-target exposure. This enhanced efficacy doubled cancer-cell apoptosis and showed strong in vivo tumor inhibition with minimal side effects.6
Magnetic Targeted Therapy and Imaging
Magnetic MOFs enable targeted drug delivery and real-time bioimaging, allowing precise release of therapeutic agents. They also offer potential for magnetic resonance imaging and hyperthermia applications.
A manganese-porphyrin MOF (PCN-222(Mn)) loaded with curcumin and coated with dextran sulfate enabled macrophage-targeted delivery for atherosclerosis treatment.
The Mn centers provided strong MRI contrast, while the MOF reduced oxidative stress and modulated macrophage activity. In vivo, the system clearly visualized plaques and significantly slowed their progression, demonstrating the effectiveness of combined imaging and therapy.7
Lithium-Ion Batteries and Supercapacitors
MOFs and MOF-derived composites serve as advanced electrode materials because their porous structures support fast ion transport, abundant active sites, and strong cycling stability. Carbonized MOFs further improve electrical conductivity and energy storage efficiency.
In lithium-ion batteries, a zinc-based MOF (Zn PdmbIm) was melt-infused onto NCM-811 to form a double-layer MOF glass coating that promotes Li pre-desolvation and Li conduction.
The coating uniformly protected the particle surface, prevented electrolyte penetration, and stabilized high voltage cycling. Li Glass@NCM-811cells achieved fast 5 C charging at 4.6 V and delivered a 385 Wh kg-1 Li metal pouch cell.8
For supercapacitors, MOFs provide high surface area and tunable architecture, enabling high capacitance and long cycle life. A 2D bimetallic Ni-Fe MOF (Ni10Fe1-BDC) delivered ~918.8 F g-1 at 4 A g-1 with rapid ion transport and low resistance.
A symmetric device based on this MOF reached 106.4 Wh kg-1 at 3720 W kg-1 and retained ~137.7 % capacitance after 2000 cycles.9
Potential of MOFs Across Science
MOFs hold enormous potential, but, as with many scientific endeavors, several issues still slow their path to industry.
Many frameworks lose stability in humid or harsh chemical environments, and long-term durability in reactors or separation systems is not yet guaranteed.
Cost and large-scale production also remain challenging, even with recent progress. Shaping MOFs into practical forms like pellets or films without reducing performance adds further complexity.
Even so, the outlook is strong. The 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry spotlit MOFs and their role in supporting cleaner energy, better emissions control, and advanced manufacturing.
As stability improves and production costs fall, MOFs are expected to move rapidly from laboratories to real industrial use, becoming key materials in energy, chemical processing, and environmental technologies.
References
- Kitagawa, S., Robson, R., & Yaghi, O. M. The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2025. NobelPrize.org, 2025.
https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/chemistry/2025/summary/ - Farha, O. K., et al. Metal–Organic Framework Materials with Ultrahigh Surface Areas: Is the Sky the Limit? Journal of the American Chemical Society, 2012, 134(36):15016–15021.
DOI:10.1021/ja3055639, https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/ja3055639 - Liu, S., et al. Mg-MOF-74 Derived Defective Framework for Hydrogen Storage at Above-Ambient Temperature Assisted by Pt Catalyst. Advanced Science, 2024, 11(18):e2401868.
DOI:10.1002/advs.202401868, https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/advs.202401868 - Wang, W., et al. Tailorable Multi-Modular Pore-Space-Partitioned Vanadium Metal-Organic Frameworks for Gas Separation. Advanced Materials, 2024, 36(30):2403834.
DOI:10.1002/adma.202403834, https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/adma.202403834 - Rezaee, R., et al. Bioinspired synthesis of ultra-small copper-aspartate BioMOF nanodots using sodium caseinate for targeted curcumin delivery. Scientific Reports, 2025, 15(1):35086.
DOI:10.1038/s41598-025-35086-x, https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-025-35086-x - Yan, X., et al. Acidic Environment-Responsive Metal Organic Framework-Mediated Dihydroartemisinin Delivery for Triggering Production of Reactive Oxygen Species in Drug-Resistant Lung Cancer. International Journal of Nanomedicine, 2024, 19:3847–3859.
DOI:10.2147/IJN.S458921, https://www.dovepress.com/articles.php?article_id=458921 - Lv, F., et al. Curcumin Equipped Nanozyme-Like Metal-Organic Framework Platform for the Targeted Atherosclerosis Treatment with Lipid Regulation and Enhanced Magnetic Resonance Imaging Capability. Advanced Science, 2024, 11(26):e2309062.
DOI:10.1002/advs.202309062, https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/advs.202309062 - Bai, L., et al. Metal-organic framework glass stabilizes high-voltage cathodes for efficient lithium-metal batteries. Nature Communications, 2025, 16(1):3484.
DOI:10.1038/s41467-025-3484-0, https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-3484-0 - Mohamedien, H. A., et al. Two-dimensional Fe-MOF and bimetallic NiFe-MOFs with different Ni : Fe ratios for superior electrochemical performance in supercapacitor applications. Nanoscale Advances, 2025.
DOI:10.1039/D5NA00123A, https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2025/na/d5na00123a