Transition-Metal-Based Zeolite Imidazolate Framework Nanofibers via an Electrospinning Approach: A Review.

Zeolite imidazolate frameworks (ZIFs) are a subclass of metal organic frameworks (MOFs) and have been considered as a special finding in the current platform of the research arena. ZIFs have been comprised of metal ions with imidazolate linkers. In recent times, ZIFs have been predominately utilized for various applications. This excellent feature is because of its fascinating properties. During the evolution of the materials era, one-dimensional (1-D) fibrous materials are also considered as an important area of research. In order to make the fibrous materials, electrospinning (ES) is considered as a more reliable way for their synthesis. 1-D material has also been utilized for various applications owing to their abnormal physicochemical properties. In this mini-review, the recent developments with various processes have been followed for the synthesis of ZIF materials and 1-D fibrous materials. We elaborated their advantages over their applications in the past years which are discussed and reviewed. More importantly, we have proposed a new area for the incorporation of transition-metal-based ZIF materials into the 1-D fibrous materials, which confers the new direction to the research community to explore its use in various applications.

In Situ Modified Nitrogen-Enriched ZIF-67 Incorporated ZIF-7 Nanofiber: An Unusual Electrocatalyst for Water Oxidation.

One-dimensional (1D) based carbonaceous materials have wider applicability owing to flexibility over their properties. Electrospinning is one of the pioneering techniques that is being utilized predominantly for the synthesis of fibers. Fibrous material has their own advantages like, high porosity over its surface, mechanical stability and fascinating physicochemical properties. With these many advantages, herein we have synthesized a distinctive nanofiber from a zeolite imidazolate framework (ZIF) based material. This powder has been mixed with PAN (polyacrylonitrile) which act as both a heteroatom source and a precursor material in the making of a fibrous material via electrospinning. The synthesized nitrogen-enriched ZIF-67 incorporated ZIF-7 microfibers were prepared under two different conditions (room temperature and N2 atmosphere) and labeled as CoZn-ZIF-RT and CoZn-ZIF-500, respectively. The newly developed materials were assessed for the first time in electrocatalytic oxygen evolution reaction (OER) studies have been carried out in a 1 M KOH electrolyte. CoZn-ZIF-500 delivered superior activity at a current density of 10 mA cm-2 with a kinetically facile Tafel slope and explicitly showed good long-term stability.