Rapid synthesis of aminal-linked covalent organic frameworks for CO2/CH4 separation

Abstract

As an emerging category of crystalline porous materials, covalent organic frameworks (COFs) are primarily synthesized via solvothermal methods. However, achieving rapid synthesis of COFs through this approach poses a significant challenge. To address the issue of slow synthesis, we studied the crystallization process of aminal-linked COFs via the condensation of a cost-effective aldehyde and secondary amine, and successfully expedited the synthesis of COFs within a one-hour duration. Furthermore, gram-scale aminal-linked COFs with abundant ultra-microporous channels demonstrated promising potential for CO₂/CH₄ separation. This study enables the rapid synthesis of aminal-linked COFs from cheap raw materials, which lays a foundation for their practical applications.