MOF-Based Platforms for Lithium Extraction from Aqueous Resources: Mechanisms, Strategies, and Perspectives

The recovery of lithium (Li) from aqueous resources, particularly salt lake brines, has demonstrated a marked increase in significance for sustainable energy technologies. Nevertheless, the process remains technically challenging due to the presence of low Li + concentrations, high Mg 2+ /Li + ratios, and the physicochemical similarity between Li + and competing ions. Conventional extraction technologies, such as solar evaporation and inorganic ion sieves, are often hindered by long processing times, high chemical consumption, limited selectivity, and poor regenerability. In this context, metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) and their derivatives have emerged as promising alternatives as advanced Li + extraction platforms, because they combine tunable pore architectures, diverse lithiophilic moieties, and their unique ability to integrate stimuli-responsive functionalities. This review offers a comprehensive and up-to-date overview of the recent advancements in the field of MOF-based Li + extraction from aqueous resources. We will summarize four key mechanisms that govern Li + recognition and transport, with a specific discussion on the role of angstrom-scale size sieving, charge-based exclusion, host–guest interactions, and stimuli-responsive modulation. The subsequent classification of recent progress is proposed into three distinct strategy domains: (1) the utilization of functionalized MOF-based platforms; (2) electrochemically driven extraction using conductive MOF derivatives; (3) stimuli-responsive approach that utilizes external light or thermal irradiation. The text places particular emphasis on the potential of pore engineering, functional-group regulation, structural engineering, and external-field triggering to enhance Li + adsorption capacity, selectivity, and regeneration efficiency. In conclusion, a comparative analysis is presented of the advantages and limitations of these three primary Li extraction methods, alongside an evaluation of the current challenges hindering their industrial translation. This review provides a comprehensive, systematic framework for the rational design of MOF-based platforms for the efficient and sustainable recovery of Li + .