Facilitating Laboratory Research Experience Using Reticular Chemistry

Rapid development in the field of reticular chemistry has allowed scientists ever-increasing control over the design and synthesis of crystalline porous materials. The promise that this field has in the development of next-generation materials for numerous applications (gas storage and separation, catalysis, chemical sensing, electronics) relies on the effective training of new scientists in the diverse array of computational, synthetic, and analytical techniques that reticular chemistry requires. Herein, we describe a laboratory-research experience designed to equip a class of upper-division undergraduates in chemistry and chemical engineering not only with these skills but also the skills necessary to communicate their future research accomplishments to the greater scientific community. The course is subdivided into three modules: (i) synthesis, characterization, and post-synthetic modification of metal–organic frameworks; (ii) superacid catalysis with metal–organic frameworks; and (iii) synthesis, characterization, and gas adsorption applications of covalent organic frameworks.