Issue 24, 2023

Reversible structural transformation of supramolecular inorganic–organic hybrid glasses and zeolitic-imidazolate frameworks

Abstract

Zeolitic-imidazolate frameworks (ZIFs) are porous coordination polymer networks which can be vitrified to bulk glasses using a conventional melt-quenching technique. Here, we report the vitrification of a two-dimensional (2D) ZIF-7-III network to a highly transparent supramolecular glass via a network-solvation approach, in which the ZIF network is interrupted by ethanol/HNO3 solution. Surprisingly, the as-synthesized glass could reversibly crystallize to 2D ZIF-7-III crystals using a dissolution–recrystallization method. The reversible structural transformation, composition, thermodynamics, and optical properties of the as-synthesized ZIF-7-III crystals and supramolecular glasses containing mixed linkers were investigated. By controlling the glass composition, the network flexibility was adjusted to increase the alignment of luminescent dye molecules during the mechanical fiber drawing process and thus polarized luminescence with a large polarization ratio (∼56%) was detected from the dye doped fibers. These results improve our understanding of the crystallization/vitrification process of inorganic–organic hybrid materials, which may enable the discovery of novel hybrid glasses with various functionalities.

Graphical abstract: Reversible structural transformation of supramolecular inorganic–organic hybrid glasses and zeolitic-imidazolate frameworks

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Research Article
Submitted
05 Aug 2023
Accepted
23 Sep 2023
First published
12 Oct 2023

Mater. Chem. Front., 2023,7, 6236-6246

Reversible structural transformation of supramolecular inorganic–organic hybrid glasses and zeolitic-imidazolate frameworks

Mohamed. A. Ali, Moushira. A. Mohamed, X. Liu and J. Qiu, Mater. Chem. Front., 2023, 7, 6236 DOI: 10.1039/D3QM00879G

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