A Decade of UiO-66 Research: A Historic Review of Dynamic Structure, Synthesis Mechanisms, and Characterization Techniques of an Archetypal Metal–Organic Framework

Abstract

UiO-66 is an archetypal metal−organic framework (MOF) with a very high surface area as well as high thermal stability. It is found that the stability can be attributed to the metal oxide node being cuboctahedral allowing for 12 extension points for 1,4-benzenedicarboxylic acid (BDC) coordination. Because of this and its exceptional tunability and functionality, which are largely due to defect control of both missing-cluster and missinglinker defects, UiO-66 has gained scientific popularity. The combination of these characteristics allows for a highly versatile material that can be adapted to many different applications. The purpose for this work is to provide a historic overview of UiO-66, outlining the major developments that changed the synthesis strategies of Zr-based MOF as well as current and future works, which include defect control, aqueous crystallization, functionality-stability trade-offs, and advanced topographies. A breakdown of the various UiO-66 structures, including isoreticular and reo-type, and different characterization techniques such as powder X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, and nitrogen porosimetry are discussed as well.

Metal‐Organic Frameworks and Metal‐Organic Cages – A Perspective

“…[85] A notable family of MOFs that exhibit excellent stability are those based on Zr-carboxylates. Indeed, UiO-66, the parent MOF built from Zr(IV) cations and terephthalate linkers [86] and related ligands has been shown to exhibit stability across a large pH range [87] notably under acidic conditions but also, in certain cases, in basic environments.…”

Metal–organic frameworks vs. buffers: case study of UiO-66 stability

“…1). 30 Zr-MOFs are widely used in water-based applications such as catalysis, sensing, water treatment and drug delivery. 11,31,32 In many of these applications, the Zr-MOFs are not utilized in neat water, but rather are dispersed in aqueous media with specific pH values, often achieved by the addition of buffers.…”

Hydrogen Sulfide (H2S) Removal via MOFs

“…UiO-66 (Universitetet I Oslo) is a MOF comprised of [Zr 6 O 4 (OH) 4 ] clusters (octahedra) that are 12-fold connected with adjacent octahedra through BDC struts (linkers), resulting in a highly face centered cubic structure ( Figure 12) [93] and one may find a few works in the literature that studied the removal of H 2 S using UiO-66 MOFs. Chavan et al [92] also probed H2S removal (relative pressures, 10 mbar) using Ni-MOF-74 and gave evidence for the formation of H2S adducts on almost 80% of the Ni sites.…”

“…UiO-66 (Universitetet I Oslo) is a MOF comprised of [Zr 6 O 4 (OH) 4 ] clusters (octahedra) that are 12-fold connected with adjacent octahedra through BDC struts (linkers), resulting in a highly face centered cubic structure ( Figure 12 ) [ 93 ] and one may find a few works in the literature that studied the removal of H 2 S using UiO-66 MOFs.…”