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Open research questions in Metal-Organic Frameworks: Synthesis and Applications

143 unresolved questions extracted from the limitations and future-work sections of 670 Metal-Organic Frameworks: Synthesis and Applications papers in our library. Each links back to the study that raised it.

What the literature leaves open

  • The paper identifies a gap in the field of coordination polymers, specifically in the use of 3,3'-bipyridine to build CPs or MOFs. The paper aims to contribute to the field by reporting a new bimetallic coordination polymer.

    The Synthesis, Spectroscopic and Structural Study of a Copper(II) Complex with a (3-py)2Hg Linker: A Zig-Zag Chain Paddle-Wheel Coordination Polymer · 2026 · DOI

  • The lack of a reliable method for achieving reproducible, highly oriented mixed-linker MOF thin films. The need for a fabrication process that can produce homogeneous and highly oriented films without elevated temperatures or toxic solvents. The challenge of controlling crystallographic orientation in MOF films, which is essential for exploiting their anisotropic properties.

    Automated Spin‐Assisted Layer‐by‐Layer Epitaxy Produces Highly Oriented Mixed‐Linker MOF Thin Films · 2026 · DOI

  • High Resolution Image Download MS PowerPoint Slide Metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) hold immense potential for applications from separations to catalysis, yet their long-term behavior across real-world environments remains unclear.

    Mapping the Hierarchical Environmental Transformations of Nanoscale UiO-66 Metal–organic Framework · 2026 · DOI

  • This work represents two rarely reported heterometallic CPs-based ratiometric sensors for PG detection, which have great potential for food safety.

    Ratiometric Detection of Propyl Gallate Based on Two Zn(II)–Tb(III) Coordination Polymers Modulated by Metal–Ligand Ratios · 2026 · DOI

  • Beyond these systems, frameworks based on organic acids, amino acids, and other biomolecules highlight a broader but largely underexplored design space of ingestible coordination materials.

    Edible metal-organic frameworks: coordination chemistry, design principles, and delivery functions · 2026 · DOI

  • However, this concept remains poorly defined, and the links between coordination chemistry, framework stability, and behavior under gastrointestinal conditions are not yet well established.

    Edible metal-organic frameworks: coordination chemistry, design principles, and delivery functions · 2026 · DOI

  • In spite of the progress made recently in the synthesis of NDI-based ligands, NDI derivatives remain underexplored in crystalline hybrid materials (CHNs) due to synthetic challenges.

    Progress of naphthalene diimides crystalline hybrid networks in design and applications · 2026 · DOI

  • This study highlights the pivotal yet underexplored role of counterions as dynamic gatekeepers, offering a tunable strategy to engineer pore environments in flexible MOFs for advanced gas separations.

    Mobile Constituent-Boosted Dynamic Separation of C 2 H 2 /C 2 H 4 /CO 2 Ternary Mixtures in Metal–Organic Frameworks · 2025 · DOI

  • The reasons for the generally superior performance of synergistic effects in bimetallic catalysts in the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) are not fully understood, largely due to the complexity of catalyst structures and the challenges associated with synthesizing long-range atomic ordering catalysts.

    Homonuclear/Heteronuclear Bimetallic Conjugated Coordination Polymers with Customized Oxygen Evolution Pathway · 2025 · DOI

  • To date, a comprehensive understanding of water adsorption behaviors and how they are influenced by MOF properties remains lacking.

    Water Adsorption in Metal–Organic Frameworks: Characteristics, Mechanisms, and Structure–Property Relationships · 2025 · DOI

  • However, it remains unclear how to achieve long spin relaxation time at room temperature in 2D c-MOFs via a bottom-up design strategy.

    Rational Construction of Layered Two-Dimensional Conjugated Metal–Organic Frameworks with Room-Temperature Quantum Coherence · 2025 · DOI

  • Despite its potential, a comprehensive understanding of design principles and spin-splitting mechanisms remains elusive.

    Engineering Altermagnetic States in Two-Dimensional Square Tessellations · 2025 · DOI

  • To overcome these limitations, future research should focus on improving the design and functionality of pyrazole ligands using advanced synthetic methods, computational modeling, and integration into hybrid materials.

    Pyrazole Ligands in Supramolecular Chemistry: Self-Assembly and Their Applications─A Comprehensive Review · 2025 · DOI

  • These findings reveal the crucial role of nonhydrostatic stress in MOF shaping and demonstrate that bulk modulus alone is insufficient to predict mechanical resilience during pelletization.

    Understanding Porosity Loss in MOF Pelletization: Intrinsic vs Extrinsic Mechanical Stability in Zn-MOF-74 · 2025 · DOI

  • Despite the growing interest in their therapeutic potential, the systemic and pulmonary toxicity of MOFs remains inadequately explored, particularly about the long-term effects of metal ion release during degradation.

    Pulmonary Injury Induced via Metal–Organic Frameworks (MOFs): ROS Generation and Inflammatory Responses Mediated by HKUST-1 · 2025 · DOI

  • However, research on customized controllable responses in Ln-MOF nanosensors is still lacking, which is critical for the molecular-level modular design.

    Customized Controllable Pyrophosphate Nanosensor Based on Lanthanide Metal–Organic Frameworks for Accurate and Sensitive Detection of Nucleic Acids · 2025 · DOI

  • Highly sensitive and selective detection of trace norfloxacin (NOR) in aqueous media was rarely reported by MOFs.

    Highly Luminescent Lanthanide Metal–Organic Frameworks for Trace Detection of Norfloxacin · 2025 · DOI

  • Viologen materials have attracted much attention due to the sensitive stimulus response to color change under appropriate external stimuli, yet the chromic mechanism has rarely been explored in depth.

    In Situ Study on the Stimuli-Responsive Chromic Mechanism of Different Intramolecular/Intermolecular Electron Transfer in a Viologen-Based Zn-MOF · 2025 · DOI

  • While bicyclic cores have been employed for this purpose, few studies are known that use spiro ligands for designing metal–organic frameworks for gas separation applications.

    Design of Pore-Space-Partitioned Metal–Organic Frameworks Using Spiro Ligand Chemistry · 2025 · DOI

  • Hydrogen-bonded organic frameworks (HOFs) are under fast development in broad applications but have not been well explored for chemiresistive gas sensing yet primarily due to insufficient active sites.

    Hydrogen-Bonded Organic Framework Nanosheets with Rich Free Oxygen Atoms for NO2 Sensing · 2025 · DOI

  • However, reports on HMOFs, especially those with high stability, are still scarce, restricting their applications in enantioseparation, particularly in the resolution of highly reactive amines with important pharmaceutical value, which can potentially dissociate MOF structures.

    Reticular Synthesis of a Highly Stable Homochiral Cr 3+ -Based Metal–Organic Framework for Enantioselective Separation · 2025 · DOI

  • However, properties regulated by releasing guest molecules in 2D PMOFs have rarely been reported.

    Releasing the Guest Molecules in 2D Polyoxometalate-Based Metal–Organic Frameworks for Enhancing Proton Conductivity and Iodine Capturing · 2025 · DOI

  • These underexplored compositions can be significant, as divalent metals with different ionic radii and redox properties can enable property control without changing the framework charge.

    Isovalent Heterometallic Pore-Space-Partitioned Metal–Organic Frameworks · 2025 · DOI

  • Although several preparation methods have been developed to date, a large-scale technique for the synthesis of HP-MOFs is still lacking.

    Continuous and Large-Scale Preparation of Hierarchical Porous HKUST-1 via the “Nanofusion” Mechanism Using Liquid-Assisted Mechanosynthesis · 2025 · DOI

  • This review offers a pioneering analysis of the relationship between MOFs morphology and photocatalytic applications, which has not been previously reported.

    Morphology-controlled metal-organic frameworks for enhanced photocatalytic performance · 2025 · DOI

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143 open questions have been extracted from the limitations and future-work passages of 670 Metal-Organic Frameworks: Synthesis and Applications papers in our library. Each one below links back to the study that raised it, so you can read the original claim in context.

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