Water-Based Synthesis of a Stable Iron-Based Metal–Organic Framework for Capturing Toxic Gases

The capture of toxic gases such as sulfur dioxide (SO2) and ammonia (NH3) can mitigate widespread air pollution. An emerging class of adsorbents known as metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) offer high porosity and tunability to capture targeted analytes. However, challenges remain in the development of safe, environmentally friendly, and inexpensive MOF syntheses. In this work, we utilized a stable iron-based MOF–Fe-soc-MOF—also known as PCN-250-Fe and Fe-MIL-127—for the effective capture of SO2 and NH3. This MOF demonstrated a high uptake of SO2 and NH3, rendering it a promising candidate for flue-gas desulfurization and NH3 capture. To accommodate the potential large-scale implementation of Fe-soc-MOF as an adsorbent, we developed a facile, inexpensive, and scalable water-based synthesis for this material.