In Situ Doping Strategy for the Preparation of Conjugated Triazine Frameworks Displaying Efficient CO2 Capture Performance

In Situ Generation of Electrolyte inside Pyridine-Based Covalent Triazine Frameworks for Direct Supercapacitor Integration

The synthesis of porous electrode materials is often linked with the generation of waste that results from extensive purification steps and low mass yield. In contrast to porous carbons, covalent triazine frameworks (CTFs) display modular properties on a molecular basis through appropriate choice of the monomer. Herein, the synthesis of a new pyridine-based CTF material is showcased. The porosity and nitrogen-doping are tuned by a careful choice of the reaction temperature. An in-depth structural characterization by using Ar physisorption, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and Raman spectroscopy was conducted to give a rational explanation of the material properties. Without any purification, the samples were applied as symmetrical supercapacitors and showed a specific capacitance of 141 F g^-1 . Residual ZnCl₂ , which acted formerly as the porogen, was used directly as the electrolyte salt. Upon the addition of water, ZnCl₂ was dissolved to form the aqueous electrolyte in situ. Thereby, extensive and time-consuming washing steps could be circumvented.

Transformation Strategy for Highly Crystalline Covalent Triazine Frameworks: From Staggered AB to Eclipsed AA Stacking

Fabrication of crystalline covalent triazine frameworks (CTFs) under mild conditions without introduction of carbonization is a long-term challenging subject. Herein, a tandem transformation strategy was demonstrated for the preparation of highly crystalline CTFs with high surface areas under mild and metal- and solvent-free conditions. CTF-1 with a staggered AB stacking order (orange powder) obtained in the presence of a catalytic amount of superacid at 250 °C was transformed to highly crystalline CTF-1 with an eclipsed AA stacking order (greenish powder) and surface area of 646 m² g^-1 through annealing at 350 °C under nitrogen. The strategy can be extended to the production of crystalline fluorinated CTFs with controllable fluorine content. This finding unlocks opportunities to design crystalline CTFs with tunable photoelectric properties.

Mechanochemical synthesis of pillar[5]quinone derived multi-microporous organic polymers for radioactive organic iodide capture and storage

The incorporation of supramolecular macrocycles into porous organic polymers may endow the material with enhanced uptake of specific guests through host−guest interactions. Here we report a solvent and catalyst-free mechanochemical synthesis of pillar[5]quinone (P5Q) derived multi-microporous organic polymers with hydrophenazine linkages (MHP-P5Q), which show a unique 3-step N₂ adsorption isotherm. In comparison with analogous microporous hydrophenazine-linked organic polymers (MHPs) obtained using simple twofold benzoquinones, MHP-P5Q is demonstrated to have a superior performance in radioactive iodomethane (CH₃I) capture and storage. Mechanistic studies show that the rigid pillar[5]arene cavity has additional binding sites though host−guest interactions as well as the halogen bond (−I⋯N = C−) and chemical adsorption in the multi-microporous MHP-P5Q mainly account for the rapid and high-capacity adsorption and long-term storage of CH₃I.

Incorporation of supramolecular macrocycles into porous organic polymers can increase uptake of guest molecules through host−guest interactions. Here the authors report a pillar[5]quinone derived multi-microporous organic polymer, which show a superior performance in radioactive iodomethane capture and storage.

Effect of Building Block Transformation in Covalent Triazine-Based Frameworks for Enhanced CO2 Uptake and Metal-Free Heterogeneous Catalysis

Covalent triazine frameworks (CTFs) have provided a unique platform in functional material design for a wide range of applications. This work reports a series of new CTFs with two new heteroaromatic building blocks (pyrazole and isoxazole groups) through a building-block transformation approach aiming for carbon capture and storage (CCS) and metal-free catalysis. The CTFs were synthesized from their respective building blocks [(4,4'-(1H-pyrazole-3,5-diyl)dibenzonitrile (pyz) and 4,4'-(isoxazole-3,5-diyl)dibenzonitrile (isox))] under ionothermal conditions using ZnCl₂ . Both of the building blocks were designed by an organic transformation of an acetylacetone containing dinitrile linker to pyrazole and isoxazole groups, respectively. Due to this organic transformation, (i) linker aromatization, (ii) higher surface areas and nitrogen contents, (iii) higher aromaticity, and (iv) higher surface basicity was achieved. Due to these enhanced properties, CTFs were explored for CO₂ uptake and metal-free heterogeneous catalysis. Among all, the isox-CTF, synthesized at 400 °C, showed the highest CO₂ uptake (4.92 mmol g^-1 at 273 K and 2.98 mmol g^-1 at 298 K at 1 bar). Remarkably, these CTFs showed excellent metal-free catalytic activity for the aerobic oxidation of benzylamine at mild reaction conditions. On studying the properties of the CTFs, it was observed that organic transformations and ligand aromatization of the materials are crucial factor to tune the important parameters that influence the CO₂ uptake and the catalytic activity. Overall, this work highlights the substantial effect of designing new CTF materials by building-block organic transformations resulting in better properties for CCS applications and heterogeneous catalysis.

Straightforward preparation of fluorinated covalent triazine frameworks with significantly enhanced carbon dioxide and hydrogen adsorption capacities

The development of advanced functional porous materials for efficient carbon capture and separation is of prime importance with respect to energy and environmental sustainability and employing covalent triazine frameworks as the adsorbents for carbon capture is deemed to be one of the most promising means to alleviate this issue. Herein, we report the construction of a set of partially fluorinated microporous covalent triazine frameworks (FCTFs) with appropriate CO2-philic functionalities (N and F) and high porosities (up to 2060 m2 g-1) for effective gas adsorption and separation. Markedly, the CO2 adsorption capacity of the FCTF materials prepared at a ZnCl2/monomer ratio of 20 and 400 °C reaches up to 4.70 mmol g-1 at 273 K and 1 bar, which is among the top level of all the reported CTFs. In addition, the studied FCTFs also exhibit a significantly high H2 uptake of 1.88 wt% at 77 K and 1 bar, outperforming most of the reported CTF materials under identical conditions. Apart from this, the obtained FCTF materials also display moderate CO2 selectivities over N2 (28) and CH4 (5.6) at room temperature.

A Covalent Triazine-Based Framework Consisting of Donor-Acceptor Dyads for Visible-Light-Driven Photocatalytic CO2 Reduction

Photocatalytic conversion of CO₂ into value-added chemical fuels is a promising approach to address the depletion of fossil energy and environment-related concerns. Tailor-making the electronic properties and band structures of photocatalysts is pivotal to improve their efficiency and selectivity in photocatalytic CO₂ reduction. Herein, a covalent triazine-based framework was developed containing electron-donor triphenylamine and electron-acceptor triazine components (DA-CTF). The engineered π-conjugated electron donor-acceptor dyads in DA-CTF not only optimized the optical bandgap but also contributed to visible-light harvesting and migration of photoexcited charge carriers. The activity of photocatalytic CO₂ reduction under visible light was significantly improved compared with that of traditional g-C₃ N₄ and reported covalent triazine-based frameworks. This study provides molecular-level insights into the mechanism of photocatalytic CO₂ reduction.

Nitrogen-Doped Hollow Copolymer Tube via Template-Free Asynchronous Polymerization with Highly Selective Separation of Hydrophilic Dipeptide for Enhancing Inhibitory Activity of Angiotensin Converting Enzyme

A N-doped hollow copolymer tube (NHCT) was fabricated via template-free one-pot asynchronous polymerization strategy. Discrepancies of monomer polymerization speed and their hydrophilic-hydrophobic interaction resulted in the assembly of a hollow tube having inner diameter and double wall thickness of ∼230 and 40 nm, respectively. The formation and growth mechanism of NHCT analyzed via advanced characterization revealed that the unique growth processes tuned a demarcating surface layer between inner (hydrophilic) and outer (hydrophobic) layers. The screening and recognition ability of NHCT were determined for two specific dipeptides (WW and RR) possessing great discrepancies in hydrophilicity and angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitory (ACE-I) activity. NHCT realized high adsorption capacity (1.57 mmol/g) and selectivity (∼1274) for hydrophilic dipeptide RR (low ACE-I activity) from the mixture of RR/WW. As a result, ACE-I activity for residual solution were enhanced about 4.1 times as compared to original solution from natural silkworm pupae protein hydrolysate. Awarding to these results and its facile and discerning ability, NHCT can be envisioned to be of great value for the separation of small functional peptides from a natural edible source.

Topotactic Synthesis of Phosphabenzene-Functionalized Porous Organic Polymers: Efficient Ligands in CO2 Conversion

Progress toward the preparation of porous organic polymers (POPs) with task-specific functionalities has been exceedingly slow-especially where polymers containing low-oxidation phosphorus in the structure are concerned. A two-step topotactic pathway for the preparation of phosphabenzene-based POPs (Phos-POPs) under metal-free conditions is reported, without the use of unstable phosphorus-based monomers. The synthetic route allows additional functionalities to be introduced into the porous polymer framework with ease. As an example, partially fluorinated Phos-POPs (F-Phos-POPs) were obtained with a surface area of up to 591 m²  g^-1 . After coordination with Ru species, a Ru/F-Phos-POPs catalyst exhibited high catalytic efficiency in the formylation of amines (turnover frequency up to 204 h^-1 ) using a CO₂ /H₂ mixture, in comparison with the non-fluorinated analogue (43 h^-1 ) and a Au/TiO₂ heterogeneous catalysts reported previously (<44 h^-1 ). This work describes a practical method for synthesis of porous organic phosphorus-based polymers with applications in transition-metal-based heterogeneous catalysis.

Tuning Carbon Dioxide Adsorption Affinity of Zinc(II) MOFs by Mixing Bis(pyrazolate) Ligands with N-Containing Tags

The four zinc(II) mixed-ligand metal-organic frameworks (MIXMOFs) Zn(BPZ)_x(BPZNO₂)_1-x, Zn(BPZ)_x(BPZNH₂)_1-x, Zn(BPZNO₂)_x(BPZNH₂)_1-x, and Zn(BPZ)_x(BPZNO₂)_y(BPZNH₂)_1-x-y (H₂BPZ = 4,4'-bipyrazole; H₂BPZNO₂ = 3-nitro-4,4'-bipyrazole; H₂BPZNH₂ = 3-amino-4,4'-bipyrazole) were prepared through solvothermal routes and fully investigated in the solid state. Isoreticular to the end members Zn(BPZ) and Zn(BPZX) (X = NO₂, NH₂), they are the first examples ever reported of (pyr)azolate MIXMOFs. Their crystal structure is characterized by a three-dimensional open framework with one-dimensional square or rhombic channels decorated by the functional groups. Accurate information about ligand stoichiometric ratio was determined (for the first time on MIXMOFs) through integration of selected ligands skeleton resonances from ¹³C cross polarized magic angle spinning solid-state NMR spectra collected on the as-synthesized materials. Like other poly(pyrazolate) MOFs, the four MIXMOFs are thermally stable, with decomposition temperatures between 708 and 726 K. As disclosed by N₂ adsorption at 77 K, they are micro-mesoporous materials with Brunauer-Emmett-Teller specific surface areas in the range 400-600 m²/g. A comparative study (involving also the single-ligand analogues) of CO₂ adsorption capacity, CO₂ isosteric heat of adsorption (Q_st), and CO₂/N₂ selectivity in equimolar mixtures at p = 1 bar and T = 298 K cast light on interesting trends, depending on ligand tag nature or ligand stoichiometric ratio. In particular, the amino-decorated compounds show higher Q_st values and CO₂/N₂ selectivity vs the nitro-functionalized analogues; in addition, tag "dilution" [upon passing from Zn(BPZX) to Zn(BPZ)_x(BPZX)_1-x] increases CO₂ adsorption selectivity over N₂. The simultaneous presence of amino and nitro groups is not beneficial for CO₂ uptake. Among the compounds studied, the best compromise among uptake capacity, Q_st, and CO₂/N₂ selectivity is represented by Zn(BPZ)_x(BPZNH₂)_1-x.

Playing with covalent triazine framework tiles for improved CO2 adsorption properties and catalytic performance

The rational design and synthesis of covalent triazine frameworks (CTFs) from defined dicyano-aryl building blocks or their binary mixtures is of fundamental importance for a judicious tuning of the chemico-physical and morphological properties of this class of porous organic polymers. In fact, their gas adsorption capacity and their performance in a variety of catalytic transformations can be modulated through an appropriate selection of the building blocks. In this contribution, a set of five CTFs (CTF1-5) have been prepared under classical ionothermal conditions from single dicyano-aryl or heteroaryl systems. The as-prepared samples are highly micro-mesoporous and thermally stable materials featuring high specific surface area (up to 1860 m2·g-1) and N content (up to 29.1 wt %). All these features make them highly attractive samples for carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) applications. Indeed, selected polymers from this series rank among the CTFs with the highest CO2 uptake at ambient pressure reported so far in the literature (up to 5.23 and 3.83 mmol·g-1 at 273 and 298 K, respectively). Moreover, following our recent achievements in the field of steam- and oxygen-free dehydrogenation catalysis using CTFs as metal-free catalysts, the new samples with highest N contents have been scrutinized in the process to provide additional insights to their complex structure-activity relationship.

Nitrogen Amelioration-Driven Carbon Dioxide Capture by Nanoporous Polytriazine

Nitrogen-enriched nanoporous polytriazines (NENPs) have been synthesized by ultrafast microwave-assisted condensation of melamine and cyanuric chloride. The experimental conditions have been optimized to tune the textural properties by synthesizing materials at different times, temperatures, microwave powers, and solvent contents. The maximum specific surface area (SA_BET) of 840 m² g^-1 was estimated in the sample (NENP-1) synthesized at 140 °C with a microwave power of 400 W and reaction time of 30 min. One of the major objectives of achieving a large nitrogen content as high as 52 wt % in the framework was realized. As predicted, the nitrogen amelioration has benefitted the application by capturing a very good amount of CO₂ of 22.9 wt % at 273 K and 1 bar. Moreover, the CO₂ storage capacity per unit specific surface area (per m² g^-1) is highest among the reported nanoporous organic frameworks. The interaction of the CO₂ molecules with the polytriazine framework was theoretically investigated by using density functional theory. The experimental CO₂ capture capacity was validated from the outcome of the theoretical calculations. The superior CO₂ capture capability along with the theoretical investigation not only makes the nanoporous NENPs superior adsorbents for the energy and environmental applications but also provides a significant insight into the fundamental understanding of the interaction of CO₂ molecules with the amine functionalities of the nanoporous frameworks.

Achieving an exceptionally high loading of isolated cobalt single atoms on a porous carbon matrix for efficient visible-light-driven photocatalytic hydrogen production

Single-atom catalysts (SACs) have shown great potential in a wide variety of chemical reactions and become the most active new frontier in catalysis due to the maximum efficiency of metal atom use. The key obstacle in preparing SAs lies in the development of appropriate supports that can avoid aggregation or sintering during synthetic procedures. As such, achieving high loadings of isolated SAs is nontrivial and challenging. Conventional methods usually afford the formation of SAs with extremely low loadings (less than 1.5 wt%). In this work, a new in situ preparation strategy that enables the synthesis of isolated cobalt (Co) SAs with an exceptionally high metal loading, up to 5.9 wt%, is developed. The approach is based on a simple one-step pyrolysis of a nitrogen-enriched molecular carbon precursor (1,4,5,8,9,12-hexaazatriphenylene hexacarbonitrile) and CoCl2. Furthermore, due to the successful electron transfer from carbon nitride to the isolated Co SAs, we demonstrate a high-performance photocatalytic H2 production using Co SAs as a co-catalyst, and the evolution rate is measured to be 1180 μmol g-1 h-1. We anticipate that this new study will inspire the discovery of more isolated SACs with high metal loadings, evidently advancing the development of this emerging type of advanced catalysts.

Highly Porous Hypercrosslinked Polymers Derived from Biobased Molecules

Highly porous and hyper-cross-linked polymers (HCPs) have a range of applications and are typically synthesized in an unsustainable manner. Herein, HCPs were synthesized from abundant biobased or biorelated compounds in sulfolane with iron(III) chloride as Lewis acid catalyst. As reactants, quercetin, tannic acid, phenol, 1,4-dimethoxybenzene, glucose, and a commercial bark extract were used. The HCPs had high CO₂ uptake (up to 3.94 mmol g^-1 at 0 °C and 1 bar), total pore volumes (up to 1.86 cm³  g^-1 ), and specific surface areas (up to 1440 m²  g^-1 ). ¹ H NMR, ¹³ C NMR, and IR spectroscopy, wide-angle X-ray scattering, elemental analysis, and SEM revealed, for example, that the HCPs consisted of amorphous and cross-linked aromatic and phenolic structures with significant contents of aliphatics, oxygen, and sulfur.

Design Strategies and Redox-Dependent Applications of Insoluble Viologen-Based Covalent Organic Polymers

Dicationic quaternary salts of 4,4'-bipyridine, also referred to as the viologen family, are well-known for their interesting redox chemistry, whereby they can be reversibly reduced into radical cationic and neutral moieties. Because of this ability to switch between different redox states, viologens have frequently been incorporated into covalent organic polymers (COPs) as molecular switches to construct stimuli-responsive materials. Although many viologen-based COPs have been reported, hyper-conjugated insoluble COPs started to emerge fairly recently and have not been comprehensively reviewed. In this review, we investigate the design strategies employed in the synthesis of insoluble viologen-based COPs, which can be broadly classified as those with viologen in the backbone and those with viologen as pendant groups. Chemical reactions used in the synthesis of each category, including Sonogashira-Hagihara cross-coupling, Menshutkin and Zincke reactions, are highlighted. Diverse applications of these COPs are discussed with particular reference to the redox state of viologen in each material. Uses of these materials for gas adsorption, organic and inorganic pollutant removal, catalysis, sensing and film fabrication are explored.

Amino-decorated bis(pyrazolate) metal–organic frameworks for carbon dioxide capture and green conversion into cyclic carbonates

The amino-tagged bis(pyrazolate) MOF Zn(BPZNH2) is an excellent CO₂ adsorbent and CO₂ epoxidation catalyst under green conditions.

Porous Polymers as Multifunctional Material Platforms toward Task-Specific Applications

Exploring advanced porous materials is of critical importance in the development of science and technology. Porous polymers, being famous for their all-organic components, tailored pore structures, and adjustable chemical components, have attracted an increasing level of research interest in a large number of applications, including gas adsorption/storage, separation, catalysis, environmental remediation, energy, optoelectronics, and health. Recent years have witnessed tremendous research breakthroughs in these fields thanks to the unique pore structures and versatile skeletons of porous polymers. Here, recent milestones in the diverse applications of porous polymers are presented, with an emphasis on the structural requirements or parameters that dominate their properties and functionalities. The Review covers the following applications: i) gas adsorption, ii) water treatment, iii) separation, iv) heterogeneous catalysis, v) electrochemical energy storage, vi) precursors for porous carbons, and vii) other applications (e.g., intelligent temperature control textiles, sensing, proton conduction, biomedicine, optoelectronics, and actuators). The key requirements for each application are discussed and an in-depth understanding of the structure-property relationships of these advanced materials is provided. Finally, a perspective on the future research directions and challenges in this field is presented for further studies.

Recent Advancements in the Synthesis of Covalent Triazine Frameworks for Energy and Environmental Applications

Covalent triazine frameworks (CTFs) are a unique type of porous materials, comprised of triazine units. Owing to the strong linkage of triazine, the most important advantage of CTFs lies in their high chemical and thermal stabilities and high nitrogen content as compared to other porous organic polymers (POPs). Therefore, CTFs are one of the most promising materials for practical applications. Much research has been devoted to developing new methods to synthesize CTFs and explore their potential applications. Nowadays, energy and environmental issues have attracted enormous attention. CTFs are particular promising for energy- and environment-related applications, due to their nitrogen-rich scaffold and robust structure. Here, we selected some typical examples and reviewed recent advancements in the synthesis of CTFs and their applications in gas adsorption, separation, and catalysis in relation to environment and energy issues.

Pyrolyzed Triazine-Based Nanoporous Frameworks Enable Electrochemical CO2 Reduction in Water

The first study of rational synthesis of triazine-based nanoporous frameworks as electrocatalysts for CO₂ reduction reaction (CO₂RR) was presented. The resulting optimized framework with rich pyridinic nitrogen-containing sites can selectively reduce CO₂ to CO in water with a high Faradic efficiency of ca. 82% under a moderate overpotential of 560 mV. The key of our success lies in the use of pyridine-based backbones as sacrificial groups inside the triazine framework for in situ generation of CO₂RR-active pyridinic N-doped sites during the high-temperature ZnCl₂-promoted polymerization process. We anticipate that this study may facilitate new possibilities for the development of porous organic polymers for electrochemical conversion of CO₂.

Preparation of Microporous Organic Polymers via UV-Initiated Radical Copolymerization

UV-initiated radical copolymerization has been successfully applied for the preparation of two kinds of microporous organic polymers (MOPs) based on divinylbenzene (DVB)/bismaleimide (BMI) monomers and DVB/pentaerythritol tetraacrylate (PET4A). The obtained MOPs exhibit high BET surface areas and good CO₂ storage performance. The maximum BET surface areas of DVB/BMI and DVB/PET4A are 585 and 887 m² g^-1, respectively. Furthermore, the ester groups embedded on the DVB/PET4A copolymer skeleton can be easily converted into carboxylic groups by hydrolysis and show superior adsorption capacity of 485 mg g^-1 toward methylene blue dye. The adoption of this highly efficient polymerization strategy offers the possibility for the economical and continuous preparation of MOPs and demonstrates great potential for industrial application.

Functionalized Covalent Triazine Frameworks for Effective CO2 and SO2 Removal

Building novel frameworks as sorbents remains a highly significant target for key environmental issues such as CO₂ or SO₂ emissions from coal-fired power plants. Here, we report the construction and tunable pore structure as well as gas adsorption properties of hierarchically porous covalent triazine-based frameworks (CTF-CSUs) functionalized by appended carboxylic acid/sodium carboxylate groups. The densely integrated functionalities on the pore walls bestow strong affinity to the as-made networks toward guest acid gases, in spite of their moderate Brunauer-Emmett-Teller surface areas. With abundant microporosity and integrated carboxylic acid groups, our frameworks deliver strong affinity toward CO₂ with considerably high enthalpy (up to 44.6 kJ/mol) at low loadings. Moreover, the sodium carboxylate-anchored framework (termed as CTF-CSU41) shows an exceptionally high uptake of SO₂ up to 6.7 mmol g^-1 (42.9 wt %) even under a low SO₂ partial pressure of 0.15 bar (298 K), representing the highest value for a scrubbing material reported to date. Significantly, such pore engineering could pave the way to broad applications of porous organic polymers.

Novel Covalent Triazine Framework for High-Performance CO2 Capture and Alkyne Carboxylation Reaction

Carbon dioxide capture and conversion have attracted extreme enthusiasm from the scientific community owing to global warming and environmental problems. However, conversion of CO₂ under atmospheric pressure is of great challenge because of the inertness of CO₂. Herein, we present a novel covalent triazine framework (CTF-DCE) prepared via ZnCl₂-catalyzed ionothermal trimerization reaction of di(4-cyanophenyl)ethyne, which displays a high Brunauer-Emmett-Teller surface area of 1355 m² g^-1 and an excellent CO₂ capture capacity of 191 mg/g at 273 K/1 bar. More importantly, silver species can be successfully fixed on the CTF matrix to produce a stable CTF-DCE-Ag heterogeneous catalyst for outstanding catalysis in the terminal alkyne carboxylation reactions under atmospheric pressure. CTF-DCE-Ag exhibited over sixfold higher turnover numbers than Ag@MIL-101. The recyclability test of the CTF-DCE-Ag catalyst demonstrated a great potential application in various environmental and energy-related applications.

Rational Design of Fe/N/S-Doped Nanoporous Carbon Catalysts from Covalent Triazine Frameworks for Efficient Oxygen Reduction

Porous organic polymers (POPs) are promising precursors for developing high performance transition metal-nitrogen-carbon (M/N/C) catalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). The rational design of POP precursors remain a great challenge, because of the elusive structural association between the sacrificial POPs and the final M/N/C catalysts. Based on covalent triazine frameworks (CTFs), we developed a series of S-doped Fe/N/C catalysts by selecting six different aromatic nitriles as building blocks. A new mixed solvent of molten FeCl₃ and S was used for CTF polymerization, which benefited the formation of Fe-N_x sites and made the subsequent pyrolysis process more convenient. Comprehensive study of these CTF-derived catalysts showed that their ORR activities are not directly dependent on the theoretical N/C ratio of the building block, but closely correlated to the ratio of the nitrile group to benzene ring (N_nitrile /N_benzene ) and geometries of the building blocks. The high ratios of N_nitrile /N_benzene are crucial for ORR activity of the final catalysts owing to the formation of more N-doped micropores and Fe-N_x sites in pyrolysis possess. The optimized catalyst shows high ORR performances in acid and superior ORR activity to the Pt/C catalysts under alkaline conditions.

Catalytic Space Engineering of Porphyrin Metal-Organic Frameworks for Combined CO2 Capture and Conversion at a Low Concentration

Porous porphyrin metal-organic frameworks (PMOFs) provide promising platforms for studying CO₂ capture and conversion (C3) owing to their versatility in photoelectric, catalytic, and redox activities and porphyrin coordination chemistry. Herein, we report the C3 application of two PMOFs by engineering the coordination space through the introduction of two catalytic metalloporphyrins doped with rhodium or iridium, Rh-PMOF-1 and Ir-PMOF-1, both of which can serve as heterogeneous catalysts for the chemical fixation of CO₂ into cyclic carbonates with yields of up to 99 %. Remarkably, the catalytic reactions can effectively proceed under low CO₂ concentrations and high yields of 83 % and 73 % can be obtained under 5 % CO₂ in the presence of Rh-PMOF-1 and Ir-PMOF-1, respectively. The synergistic effect of the metalloporphyrin ligand and the Zr₆ O₈ cluster, in combination with the CO₂ concentration effect from the pore space, might account for the excellent catalytic performance of Rh-PMOF-1 under low CO₂ concentration. Recycling tests of Rh-PMOF-1 show negligible loss of catalytic activity after 10 runs.

Nitrogen and sulfur Co-doped microporous activated carbon macro-spheres for CO2 capture

Millimeter-sized nitrogen and sulfur co-doped microporous activated carbon spheres (NSCSs) were first synthesized from poly(styrene-vinylimidazole-divinylbenzene) resin spheres through concentrated H₂SO₄ sulfonation, carbonization and KOH activation. Styrene (ST) and N-vinylimidazole (VIM) were carbon and nitrogen sources, while the sulfonic acid functional groups introduced by the simple concentrated sulfuric acid sulfonation worked simultaneously as cross-linking agent and sulfur source during the following thermal treatments. It was found that the surface chemistries, textural structures, and CO₂ adsorption performances of the NSCSs were significantly affected by the addition of VIM. The NSCS-4-700 sample with a molar ratio of ST: VIM = 1: 0.75 showed the best CO₂ uptake at different temperatures and pressures. An exhaustive adsorption evaluation indicated that CO₂ sorption at low pressures originated from the synergistic effect of surface chemistry and micropores below 8.04 Å, while at the moderate pressure of 8.0 bar, CO₂ uptake was dominated by the volume of micropores. The thermodynamics suggested the exothermic and orderly nature of the adsorption process, which was dominated by a physisorption mechanism. The high CO₂ adsorption capacity, fast kinetic adsorption rate, and great regeneration stability of the nitrogen and sulfur co-doped activated carbon spheres indicated that the as-prepared carbon adsorbents were good candidates for large-scale CO₂ capture.

Direct Synthesis of a Covalent Triazine-Based Framework from Aromatic Amides

There have been extensive efforts to synthesize crystalline covalent triazine-based frameworks (CTFs) for practical applications and to realize their potential. The phosphorus pentoxide (P₂ O₅ )-catalyzed direct condensation of aromatic amide instead of aromatic nitrile to form triazine rings. P₂ O₅ -catalyzed condensation was applied on terephthalamide to construct a covalent triazine-based framework (pCTF-1). This approach yielded highly crystalline pCTF-1 with high specific surface area (2034.1 m²  g^-1 ). At low pressure, the pCTF-1 showed high CO₂ (21.9 wt % at 273 K) and H₂ (1.75 wt % at 77 K) uptake capacities. The direct formation of a triazine-based COF was also confirmed by model reactions, with the P₂ O₅ -catalyzed condensation reaction of both benzamide and benzonitrile to form 1,3,5-triphenyl-2,4,6-triazine in high yield.

Fast tuning of covalent triazine frameworks for photocatalytic hydrogen evolution

A fast and facile route for the optimization of covalent triazine frameworks (CTFs) for photocatalytic hydrogen production is presented. Within 10 minutes a CTF with low photocatalytic activity can be converted into a highly active photocatalyst. Optimized CTF catalysts show an average hydrogen evolution rate of 1072 μmol h^-1 g^-1 under visible light (>420 nm).