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Ultra-fast degradation of chemical warfare agents using mof-nanofiber kebabs
Zhao, J., Lee, D. T., Yaga, R. W., Hall, M. G., Barton, H. F., Woodward, I. R., Oldham, C. J., Walls, H. J., Peterson, G. W., & Parsons, G. N. (2016). Ultra-fast degradation of chemical warfare agents using mof-nanofiber kebabs. Angewandte Chemie - International Edition, 55(42), 13224-13228. https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.201606656
The threat associated with chemical warfare agents (CWAs) motivates the development of new materials to provide enhanced protection with a reduced burden. Metal-organic frame-works (MOFs) have recently been shown as highly effective catalysts for detoxifying CWAs, but challenges still remain for integrating MOFs into functional filter media and/or protective garments. Herein, we report a series of MOF-nanofiber kebab structures for fast degradation of CWAs. We found TiO2 coatings deposited via atomic layer deposition (ALD) onto polyamide-6 nanofibers enable the formation of conformal Zr-based MOF thin films including UiO-66, UiO-66-NH2, and UiO-67. Cross-sectional TEM images show that these MOF crystals nucleate and grow directly on and around the nanofibers, with strong attachment to the substrates. These MOF-functionalized nanofibers exhibit excellent reactivity for detoxifying CWAs. The half-lives of a CWA simulant compound and nerve agent soman (GD) are as short as 7.3 min and 2.3 min, respectively. These results therefore provide the earliest report of MOF-nanofiber textile composites capable of ultra-fast degradation of CWAs.