NOBEL PRIZE IN CHEMISTRY 2025: METAL–ORGANIC FRAMEWORKS (MOFs)

1. NOBEL PRIZE IN CHEMISTRY 2025: METAL–ORGANIC FRAMEWORKS (MOFs)

Context

The 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry honors Metal–Organic Frameworks (MOFs), crystalline materials engineered to capture carbon, harvest water, remove pollutants, and advance clean energy and medical technologies effectively.

The Laureates and Their Contribution

This year’s Nobel honors three scientific pioneers:

• Omar M. Yaghi (Jordanian–American): Known for devising robust, high-capacity MOF architectures for energy and environment applications.
• Richard Robson (Australia): Laid the early conceptual groundwork for MOF structures with his studies of metal–organic crystals in the late 20th century.
• Susumu Kitagawa (Japan): Evolved MOFs into flexible systems capable of dynamic storage and delivery of molecules.
  Their collective advances established MOFs as an extraordinarily customizable class of materials, setting new standards in flexibility and atomic-level precision.

Understanding Metal–Organic Frameworks (MOFs)

MOFs are composed of metal ions joined by organic linkers, creating intricate networks rich in nano-sized cavities.

• Their structure is porous and exceptionally lightweight, yet strong; even a single gram’s surface area can rival an entire football pitch.
• MOFs behave like engineered atomic “sponges,” capable of trapping, storing, and releasing targeted molecules.

Evolution and Development

• Robson (1970s-1980s): Constructed the first metal–organic structures, highlighting their possibility but limited by instability.
• Kitagawa (1990s): Introduced mechanisms for flexibility and molecular storage, giving MOFs adaptive properties.
• Yaghi (2000s): Developed stable, high-capacity MOFs, introducing the “reticular chemistry” concept for intentional and systematic material design.
  The trio’s contributions have ushered in a new generation of materials built for tailored, real-world utility.

Applications and Real-World Impact

MOFs stand at the frontier of applied chemistry:

1. Climate and Environment:
   • Effective in capturing and storing atmospheric carbon dioxide, offering a strategic tool for combating global warming.
   • Capable of removing hazardous gases and persistent pollutants from air and water sources.
2. Water Security:
   • Certain MOFs extract water from ambient air, providing solutions to water shortages even in desert regions.
3. Energy:
   • Their structure is ideal for hydrogen storage, facilitating advancements in renewable fuel cell technology.
4. Health:
   • Used for controlled drug release and targeted delivery, enhancing treatment efficiency and lowering side effects.
5. Industrial Use:
   • MOFs serve as sensors for hazardous substances and as selective catalysts in manufacturing, reducing energy consumption and waste.

MOFs vs Zeolites

MOFs surpass zeolites in flexibility and versatility thanks to their structural and chemical tunability.

Conclusion

The 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, awarded to Yaghi, Robson, and Kitagawa, marks a transformative chapter for science and society. Metal–Organic Frameworks exemplify how humans can engineer materials at the molecular scale for the world’s urgent challenges—turning chemical imagination into real, measurable progress.