An Australian chemist and two colleagues from Japan and the United States have been awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their pioneering development of a revolutionary class of materials known as metal-organic frameworks, or MOFs. The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in Stockholm recognized the trio for creating molecular constructions that promise to help solve some of the most critical global challenges, including climate change, water scarcity, and pollution.
The laureates’ work has launched a new era in materials science, yielding ultra-porous materials that function like microscopic sponges. These MOFs possess the largest internal surface areas of any known substance, allowing them to capture, store, and separate gases like carbon dioxide with unprecedented efficiency. Their applications extend to harvesting water directly from desert air, filtering contaminants from the environment, storing hazardous gases, and accelerating chemical reactions, opening up possibilities previously confined to science fiction.
A New Form of Molecular Architecture
Metal-organic frameworks represent a novel form of molecular architecture built with precision and design. The prizewinning work involves combining positively charged metal ions, which act as cornerstones or anchors, with carbon-based organic molecules that serve as linkers. When combined, these components self-assemble into highly ordered, three-dimensional crystals filled with vast, empty cavities. The result is a structure akin to molecular scaffolding with an extraordinary internal surface area. Just a few grams of a MOF powder can have an internal surface area equivalent to a football field, making them the most porous solid materials ever created.
By carefully selecting the metal ions and organic linkers, chemists can now design and construct frameworks with tailored properties. The size and chemical nature of the pores can be finely tuned to attract and trap specific molecules. This ability to create custom-made materials with new, predictable functions is what makes the field so powerful and has led to the creation of tens of thousands of unique MOFs since the laureates’ initial discoveries.
Decades of Foundational Research
The journey to this chemical breakthrough began in 1989. Professor Richard Robson, at the University of Melbourne in Australia, conducted early experiments combining copper ions with a four-armed organic molecule. This work produced a well-ordered crystal with innumerable cavities, demonstrating the potential of the approach. While this initial framework was unstable and prone to collapse, it laid the conceptual groundwork for the entire field.
Building on this foundation, Susumu Kitagawa of Kyoto University, Japan, and Omar M. Yaghi, now at the University of California, Berkeley, made a series of revolutionary discoveries between 1992 and 2003. Working separately, they developed methods to create highly stable and robust MOFs. Yaghi created a very stable framework and demonstrated that it could be modified through rational design to imbue it with new, desirable properties. Kitagawa proved that gases could flow in and out of the crystalline structures and predicted that the frameworks could be designed to be flexible, a property crucial for many applications.
Solving Critical Global Challenges
The practical applications of metal-organic frameworks are vast and directly address pressing environmental and industrial needs. Their unique ability to selectively capture and store molecules makes them exceptionally valuable tools for a more sustainable future.
Carbon Capture and Climate
One of the most significant applications for MOFs is in tackling climate change. The materials’ microscopic pores are ideally suited for trapping carbon dioxide molecules. This makes it possible to develop more efficient and cost-effective systems for capturing CO2 emissions from power plants and industrial facilities before they enter the atmosphere. Some research is even focused on using MOFs for direct air capture, a technology considered crucial for mitigating the greenhouse effect.
Water Harvesting and Purification
MOFs also offer profound solutions to water scarcity and pollution. Certain frameworks are designed to be exceptionally effective at capturing water molecules, even from arid desert air with low humidity. This technology could provide drinking water in the world’s driest regions. Furthermore, other custom-designed MOFs can act as precise filters, targeting and removing specific pollutants from water, such as PFAS chemicals or traces of pharmaceuticals in the environment.
Recognition from the Royal Swedish Academy
In its official announcement, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences lauded the laureates for having “created molecular constructions with large spaces through which gases and other chemicals can flow.” Heiner Linke, the Chair of the Nobel Committee for Chemistry, stated that “Metal-organic frameworks have enormous potential, bringing previously unforeseen opportunities for custom-made materials with new functions.” The prize is a recognition of fundamental research that has blossomed into a thriving global field of chemistry with tangible benefits for humanity. The formal award ceremony will take place in Stockholm on December 10, the anniversary of Alfred Nobel’s death.
The Laureates and Their Institutions
The 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry is shared by three individuals whose collective work established and advanced the field of MOFs. The winners are Richard Robson of the University of Melbourne, Australia; Susumu Kitagawa of Kyoto University, Japan; and Omar M. Yaghi of the University of California, Berkeley, in the USA. Their highly cited papers have guided and shaped the research area for more than two decades, reflecting the foundational and continued importance of their contributions. Their discoveries have empowered a new generation of scientists to design and build materials at the molecular level, transforming a theoretical possibility into a powerful and practical reality.
