Nobel Prize in Chemistry awarded to researchers of metal-organic structures
MOFs have not yet achieved widespread industrial use, but they have enormous potential
The 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to Richard Robson (United Kingdom), Susumu Kitagawa (Japan) and Omar Yaghi (United States) for their fundamental work on metal-organic structures (MOFs), as announced this Wednesday by the Swedish Academy.
MOFs are highly ordered, porous three-dimensional crystal lattices with a huge internal surface area. They are built following a simple principle: metallic atoms, which act as fixed “nodes”, are connected by organic molecules (bonds), forming a predictable geometric structure.
In the 1980s, Robson was the first to successfully translate the MOF concept into the laboratory, demonstrating that metal ions and specially designed organic ligands could self-assemble into a highly ordered crystalline structure with large internal voids (porosity).
His work confirmed the principle of using coordination chemistry to build predictable and extended three-dimensional structures.
In 1997, Kitagawa created the first MOF that maintained its shape and stability even after removing the pores from the solvent used in its synthesis.
This discovery was crucial because it demonstrated the potential of MOFs to store and release gases (such as methane, nitrogen or oxygen).
He also developed the concept of “flexible” or “breathable” MOFs, materials that change shape in response to external stimuli such as pressure or the presence of guest molecules.
Yaghi gave this class of materials their definitive name, “metal-organic frameworks” (MOF), and postulated the idea of creating them with predictable, personalized structures.
In 1999, it introduced MOF-5, which set a new record with a gigantic internal surface area of 2,900 square meters per gram, more than three times better than the existing alternative (zeolites).
Furthermore, Yaghi demonstrated that MOFs could be designed rationally (the “Lego principle”), allowing researchers to precisely control pore size and function by selecting different organic bonds.
Although their industrial use is not yet widespread, MOFs have potential applications that include removing CO2 from the air, storing hydrogen for fuel cells, filtering certain contaminants, and accelerating chemical reactions, which would be useful for treating crude oil or antibiotics in contaminated water.
About The Author
