Sol–Gel Processing of Metal–Organic Frameworks

Abstract

Sol–gel processing represents a powerful and versatile strategy for the preparation of functional inorganic and hybrid materials that facilitate control over the molecular composition, as well as organization of the materials at the various length scales relevant to fundamental and applied research. Recent advances have enabled its use for the processing of an emerging class of functional porous materials called metal–organic frameworks (MOFs). Here, sol–gel approaches can be employed for the direct manipulation of MOFs, or as a route to the construction of composite materials where the properties of the MOF are synergistically combined with those of a carefully chosen inorganic phase. In this review, we present the most significant progress made in this emerging area, according to four main synthetic strategies, with a particular focus on describing how sol–gel processing enhances the functionalities of the MOF. These strategies include (1) molecular scale manipulations of the pore surfaces of MOFs with ...