A novel multifunctional MOF-based composite with good biocompatibility, high drug loading capacity, sustained drug release and outstanding MR imaging capability was developed through a simple in situ growth procedure for simultaneous drug delivery and magnetic resonance (MR) imaging.

The unique features of high porosity, shape selectivity, and multiple active sites make metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) promising as novel stationary phases for high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). However, the wide particle size distribution and irregular shape of conventional MOFs lead to lower column efficiency of such MOF-packed columns. Herein, the fabrication of monodisperse MOF@SiO2 core-shell microspheres as the stationary phase for HPLC to overcome the above-mentioned problems is reported. Zeolitic imidazolate framework 8 (ZIF-8) was used as an example of MOFs due to its permanent porosity, uniform pore size, and exceptional chemical stability. Unique carboxyl-modified silica spheres were used as the support to grow the ZIF-8 shell. The fabricated monodisperse ZIF-8@SiO2 packed columns (5 cm long × 4.6 mm i.d.) show high column efficiency (23,000 plates m(-1) for bisphenol A) for the HPLC separation of endocrine-disrupting chemicals (bisphenol A, β-estradiol, and p-(tert-octyl)phenol) and pesticides (thiamethoxam, hexaflumuron, chlorantraniliprole, and pymetrozine) within 7 min with good relative standard deviations for 11 replicate separations of the analytes (0.01-0.39, 0.65-1.7, 0.70-1.3, and 0.17-0.91% for retention time, peak area, peak height, and half peak width, respectively). The ZIF-8@SiO2 microspheres combine the advantages of the good column packing properties of the uniform monodisperse silica microspheres and the separation ability of the ZIF-8 crystals.

Scintillators, as spectral and energy transformers, are essential for X-ray imaging applications. However, their current disadvantages, including high-temperature sintering and generation of agglomerated powders or large bulk crystals, may not meet the increasing demands of low cost, nontoxicity, and flexible radiation detection. Thus, improved perovskite scintillators are developed in this research. A hybrid perovskite ((C8H17NH3)2SnBr4), which is nontoxic, lead-free, and organic–inorganic, is developed as a scintillator with good emission performance and radioluminescence intensity. These perovskite scintillators are synthesized at low temperatures in an aqueous acid solution, through which they generate a near-unity photoluminescence quantum yield of 98% with the excitation of ultraviolet light. As far as we know, this work is the first to show that the two-dimensional (2D) (C8H17NH3)2SnBr4 perovskite scintillator films prepared by coating a polymer layer can be applied to an X-ray imaging system. The results demonstrate that the low cost X-ray imaging device with good resolution and performance benefits dramatically from this lead-free organic–inorganic hybrid perovskite film. Therefore, this 2D-layered (C8H17NH3)2SnBr4 perovskite scintillator may be a high potential candidate for scintillating material for X-ray imaging techniques.