Pillar-Layered Metal-Organic Frameworks for Sensing Specific Amino Acid and Photocatalyzing Rhodamine B Degradation

Abstract

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have presented potential for detection of specific species and catalytic application due to their diverse framework structures and functionalities. In this work, two novel pillar-layered MOFs [Cd₆(DPA)₂(NTB)₄(H₂O)₄]_n·n(DPA·5DMA·H₂O) (<b>1</b>) and [Cu₂(DPA)(OBA)₂]_n·n(2.5DMF·H₂O) (<b>2</b>) [DPA = 2,5-di(pyridin-4-yl)aniline, H₃NTB = 4,4',4''-nitrilotribenzoic acid, H₂OBA = 4,4'-oxydibenzoic acid, DMA = N,N-dimethylacetamide, DMF = N,N-dimethylformamide] were successfully synthesized and structurally characterized. Both <b>1</b> and <b>2</b> have three-dimensional framework structures. The fluorescent property of <b>1</b> makes it possible for sensing specific amino acid such as L-glutamic acid (Glu) and L-aspartic acid (Asp). While MOF <b>2</b> was found to be suitable for photocatalytic degradation of Rhodamine B (RhB) in the presence of H₂O₂. The results imply that MOFs are versatile and metal centers are important in determining their properties.