posted on 2020-10-06, 03:29authored byMichael A. Sinnwell, Quin R. S. Miller, Lauren Palys, Dushyant Barpaga, Lili Liu, Mark E. Bowden, Yi Han, Sanjit Ghose, Maria L. Sushko, H. Todd Schaef, Wenqian Xu, May Nyman, Praveen K. Thallapally
Directed synthesis
promises control over architecture and function
of framework materials. In practice, however, designing such syntheses
requires a detailed understanding of the multistep pathways of framework
formations, which remain elusive. By identifying intermediate coordination
complexes, this study provides insights into the complex role of a
structure-directing agent (SDA) in the synthetic realization of a
promising material. Specifically, a novel molecular intermediate was
observed in the formation of an indium zeolitic metal–organic
framework (ZMOF) with a sodalite topology. The role of the imidazole
SDA was revealed by time-resolved in situ powder X-ray diffraction
(XRD) and small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS).