Covalent organic frameworks (COFs) are porous materials that can be useful for, e.g., gas storage. Silver nanoparticles can be used, for example, as antimicrobial materials or for the catalytic degradation of organic pollutants. Combining these two types of material could lead to interesting properties.

Zi-Yan Zhou, Jing-Lin Mu, Shandong University of Technology, Zibo, China, Zhong-Min Su, Changchun University of Science and Technology and Jilin University, both Changchun, China, and colleagues have used a COF as a support for silver nanoparticles. The team used 2,4,6-tris-(4-formylphenoxy)-1,3,5- triazine (TPT-CHO) and hydrazine hydrate to prepare the layered COF (TPHH-COF). The desired hybrid material Ag@TPHH-COF was then obtained by solution infiltration.

The Ag nanoparticles are well dispersed in the prepared hybrid material. Ag@TPHH-COF efficiently catalyzed the reduction of organic pollutants from wastewater, e.g., various nitroaromatic compounds. It also catalyzes the reduction of organic dyes such as rhodamine B, methylene blue, methyl orange, or congo red. The catalyst could be recovered and reused.

• The preparation of new Covalent Organic Framework embedded with silver nanoparticles and its applications in degradation of organic pollutants from waste water,
  Rui-Lei Wang, Dong-Peng Li, Lu-Jie Wang, Xiao Zhang, Zi-Yan Zhou, Jing-Lin Mou, Zhong-Min Su,
  Dalton Trans. 2018.
  https://doi.org/10.1039/c8dt04458a