Metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) as popular nanomaterials
have outstanding application prospects in water sorption applications
due to their unique structures with excellent properties, such as
high porosity, large specific surface area, nanoscale features, reticulation
structure, and controllable adjustment of the pore size. Sorbents
require high water sorption and water stability to collect, utilize,
or remove water. The structure of most MOFs is destroyed upon contact
with water, which greatly limits their practical application. This
paper summarizes the internal mechanism of water-stable MOFs and describes
the optimal design strategy of water-stabilized MOFs based on the
structural design of water-stabilized MOFs and the modification of
existing MOFs. This review summarizes and analyzes the current typical
MOF synthesis and preparation methods. Solutions are proposed for
the problems of MOFs in terms of the synthesis mechanism, mass production,
and application, and the manufacturing strategies and long-term reliability
of MOFs are also prospected. The water sorption mechanism of water-stable
MOFs and the influencing factors of water sorption behavior are described,
and the optimization strategy of the water sorption performance of
MOFs is proposed in terms of the microstructure, surface functional
groups, and electron group hybridization. Meanwhile, the current challenges
are summarized according to the characteristics of water-adsorbing
MOFs, and the future development of MOFs are prospected. It is expected
to provide a valuable reference for the research direction of the
application of MOFs in water sorption.