09/10/2025
Chemistry Nobel Prize 2025: A new era of chemistry—the discovery of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs)
A revolution has taken place in the world of chemistry. Three extraordinary scientists—Susumu Kitagawa, Richard Robson, and Omar Yaghi—have won the 2025 Nobel Prize.Their groundbreaking discovery, Metal–Organic Frameworks (MOFs), has opened a new chapter in the scientific horizon.
Metal-organic frameworks are essentially a kind of strange "molecular architecture." In this structure, metal ions and organic compounds are combined together to form a network that contains large empty spaces or cavities.Various molecules can enter and exit through this cavity—as if it were a spacious and comfortable studio apartment specially designed for molecules!
The impact of this discovery is now widespread around the world. Researchers are using MOFs to extract water from desert air, remove pollutants from water, capture carbon dioxide, and even store hydrogen.Some MOFs absorb ethylene gas released by fruit, keeping it fresh for longer. Some MOFs may contain enzymes capable of breaking down antibiotics in the environment.
This extraordinary journey began in 1974, at the University of Melbourne, Australia, when Professor Richard Robson was preparing to build a model of a molecule for his students using wooden balls and sticks. As he made specific holes in each ball, he realized that the bonding pattern of each atom was inherent in its structure.From that thought arises a new question: if we combine not individual atoms, but different molecules according to their natural properties, is it possible to create entirely new types of molecular structures?
The result of this thinking is today's MOF—a scientific marvel that is opening up new directions in future sustainable development, environmental protection, and energy technology.
In the words of the Nobel Committee, these three scientists are “architects of chemistry”—whose structures are shaping not only the shape of matter but also the future.
