Growth of metal-organic frameworks in solution influenced by laser-induced plasma at the early stage

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) in which organic molecules are coordinated to metal ion clusters has been attracting much attention. MOFs have nano-sized pores in their structure and have a large specific surface area, whose size can be widely tunable via combinations of metal elements and organic ligands. Sometimes by functionalization with functional groups, various features of MOFs can be adjusted. Due to these characteristics, MOFs are expected to be applied to various applications such as gas adsorption/storage/separation, catalysts, and sensors. While conventional MOF synthesis methods include solvothermal method, microwave irradiation method, and electrochemical method, MOF synthesis with laser-induced plasma on metal targets in liquid has been reported recently. However, there is insufficient research on the effect of pulsed-laser irradiation on MOF synthesis. In this study, we irradiate raw materials of HKUST-1 by pulsed-laser to initiate plasma in liquid only at the early stage of the synthesis, to see how the initial plasma treatment can control the following growth process. After the plasma generation, MOF grows dependently on the initial plasma-treatment conditions. The details as well as the kinetic analysis with a Gualtieri model will be presented at the conference.