Taming of Organic Pollutants Using Covalent-Organic-Framework-Based Materials: Challenges and Future Prospects

Abstract

Being available in water and air, organic contaminants have easy access to animal bodies to accumulate in the biological food chain, resisting chemical, biological, and photolytic degradation. Besides, they have the ability to travel great distances to end up being dispersed across a broad area, even in places where they have never been used. Furthermore, they pose a significant risk to both human society and the environment, which forces the international scientific community to plan and act to eradicate organic pollutants from the environment and establish a mechanism to stop their discharge. In this context, covalent organic frameworks (COFs)-based materials are found to be promising to control air and water pollutants because of their unique porous, and polymeric crystal structure. This study highlights the history, design, and applications of COFs for reducing organic pollution, as well as the obstacles and opportunities facing their widespread usage in environmental remediation today.