Context:
The 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry has been awarded jointly to Richard Robson (Australia), Susumu Kitagawa (Japan), and Omar Yaghi (Jordan–American) for their pioneering discovery and development of Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs) — materials that bridge metals and organic compounds, revolutionizing multiple scientific and industrial domains.
Key Highlights / Details:
- The trio discovered and synthesized Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs) — crystalline structures composed of metal ions linked by organic molecules.
- MOFs possess extraordinary porosity, allowing them to store, separate, and transport gases, including hydrogen, methane, and carbon dioxide.
- These materials have vast potential applications in carbon capture, drug delivery, catalysis, water purification, and hydrogen fuel storage.
- The Nobel Committee recognized their work for merging inorganic (metal) and organic (carbon-based) chemistry — a breakthrough that enabled the creation of tailored molecular architectures.
- Richard Robson, of the University of Melbourne, was among the earliest to describe MOF structures in the 1980s.
- Susumu Kitagawa, from Kyoto University, and Omar Yaghi, from the University of California, Berkeley, expanded the field by designing highly stable and tunable MOFs in the 1990s.
- The research bridged coordination chemistry with materials science, laying the foundation for sustainable energy and environmental solutions.
Relevant Prelims Points:
- Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs):
- Hybrid crystalline materials consisting of metal nodes connected by organic linkers.
- Exhibit high surface area and porosity, making them effective for gas storage and catalysis.
- Applications: Carbon capture and sequestration, water harvesting, fuel cells, and gas sensors.
- Nobel Prize in Chemistry (2025): Awarded by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.
- Earlier Related Discoveries:
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- 2022: Click Chemistry and Bioorthogonal Chemistry.