Framework Stabilized Metal Nanostructures for the Next Generation Photocatalysis

Abstract

Framework-stabilized metal nanostructures have emerged as a powerful class of catalysts, offering excellent activity, selectivity, and long-term stability. Encapsulation of nanoparticles (NPs) within porous crystalline frameworks such as metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) and covalent organic frameworks (COFs) effectively prevents aggregation, ensures accessibility of active sites, and enables efficient charge separation. This review provides a comprehensive analysis of synthesis protocols: in-situ, post-synthetic, and one-pot methods, keeping in mind the crucial factors that dictate structural architectures. The role of reducing agents, solvents, functional groups, temperature, and framework nanoparticle interactions acts as the pivotal role in the structure-activity relationship. The stimulating role of such catalyst system can be employed in the field of clean energy and sustainable development: hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), CO2 reduction (CO2RR), selective oxidation, and organic transformations are critically discussed to establish active material in such applications. In particular, the challenges related to uniform encapsulation, framework stabilisation under reaction conditions, scalability, and recyclability are significantly accessed, together with future prospects in defect engineering, hybrid bimetallic systems, and enhanced light-harvesting abilities. Therefore, this review aims to provide an overview of catalysis, energy conversion, and materials science with a consolidated perspective on the fabrication of next-generation hierarchical frameworks.