Growth of large single MOF crystals and effective separation of organic dyes

Abstract

Through the optimization of synthesis conditions, we obtained large Cu3(BTC)2 crystals with a diameter of 2–4 mm. Such large crystals could be utilized as “chromatographic columns” for effective separation of organic dyes such as thionine (TH) and pyronin B (PB). It was found that the concentration of hydron was the key factor to obtain the large pure crystals. This strategy could be used to grow other hydrophilic MOFs.