Highly Mesoporous Ru-MIL-125-NH₂ Produced by Supercritical Fluid for Efficient Photocatalytic Hydrogen Production

Abstract

The application of metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) in catalysis is largely restricted by their intrinsic properties, thus the development of modified MOFs is promising for improving the activities. Here, we propose the formation of Ru-coordinated MOF with a hierarchically meso- and microporous structure by a supercritical fluid route. Such a photocatalyst has the preferable electronic structure, improved visible-light adsorption ability, and high porosity for facilitating mass transport. Owing to these combined advantages, the as-synthesized Ru-coordinated MOF catalyst exhibits outstanding photocatalytic activity for hydrogen production, which is much higher than those of the pure MOF and the Ru nanoparticle-loaded MOF. This study opens up new opportunity for improving the catalytic performances of MOFs by modifying their microstructures through a supercritical fluid route.