Molecular engineering in a family of pillared-layered metal-organic frameworks for tuning gas adsorption behavior

From Hydrogen Bond to van der Waals Force: Molecular Scalpel Strategy to Exfoliate a Two-Dimensional Metal-Organic Nanosheet

The facile exfoliation of a two-dimensional metal-organic nanosheet of {[Co(HL)(H₂O)(Py)_3/4]·¹/₂H₂O·DMF}_n [1-Py; H₃L = 5-(1H-pyrazol-4-yl)isophthalic acid and Py = pyridine] was achieved, via a molecular scalpel strategy, by weakening intermolecular forces between adjacent layers. The resulting 1-Py/KB40 (KB = Ketjen black) shows an increased oxygen evolution reaction (OER) performance with an overpotential of 370 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm^-2 and a Tafel slope of 58 mV dec^-1. This work sheds light on the structure-morphology-reactivity relationship of such materials in OER.