Nanocasting in metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) is a technique of adding a secondary support or “scaffold” to the MOF, with one of the aims being to enhance the thermal stability of catalytic sites in the MOF. MOFs of interest for this study include NU-1000, NU-901, and aluminum-cobalt modified NU-1000 with oxozirconium clusters as nodes, linked together by organic groups to produce a porous framework. For the nanocasting process, silica precursors were infiltrated and condensed in the pores of these MOFs in order to keep cluster sites separated at high temperatures (~500 °C or higher). After nanocasting, the oxozirconium nodes and associated catalytic properties were maintained even after the materials underwent treatment at high temperatures, in contrast to MOFs that had not undergone nanocasting treatment so that oxozirconium nodes sintered to form bulk zirconia at the high temperatures. In order to verify the compatibility of nanocasting with other MOFs, MOFs having different metal clusters were also examined. These include DUT-9 with oxonickel clusters, yttrium-doped UiO-66, Ni-loaded NU-1000, and a cerium-containing MOF as potential candidates for nanocasting. For some of these MOFs, the infiltration/condensation processes were modified to avoid dissolution and aggregation of metal ions during nanocasting.

Nanocasting – Introducing secondary supports into metal-organic frameworks to increase thermal stability of the nodes

255th National Meeting (2018)

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