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Key Points

Three brilliant scientists just won the 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their work on metal-organic frameworks. These amazing structures contain large spaces that can trap gases and chemicals with incredible precision. What's really exciting is how these MOFs can help solve major environmental problems like water scarcity and carbon emissions. The technology has already led to tens of thousands of different framework designs with endless possibilities for future applications.

Key Points: Kitagawa Robson Yaghi Win 2025 Chemistry Nobel for MOFs

  • Scientists created molecular structures with large cavities for gas storage and flow
  • MOFs can harvest water from desert air and capture carbon dioxide emissions
  • The frameworks enable custom materials for environmental cleanup and chemical reactions
  • Tens of thousands of MOF variations now exist with diverse industrial applications
2 min read

3 scientists win 2025 Chemistry Nobel for developing metal-organic frameworks

Three scientists awarded Nobel Prize for creating metal-organic frameworks that harvest water from desert air, capture CO2, and enable custom materials.

"Metal-organic frameworks have enormous potential, bringing previously unforeseen opportunities for custom-made materials with new functions - Heiner Linke, Nobel Committee Chair"

New Delhi, Oct 8

Three scientists from the US, Japan, and Australia on Wednesday have been conferred with the 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for developing the metal-organic frameworks.

The laureates Susumu Kitagawa, Richard Robson, and Omar M. Yaghi created molecular constructions with large spaces through which gases and other chemicals can flow.

These constructions, metal-organic frameworks, can be used to harvest water from desert air, capture carbon dioxide, store toxic gases, or catalyse chemical reactions.

“The 2025 #NobelPrize in Chemistry has been awarded to Susumu Kitagawa, Richard Robson, and Omar M. Yaghi ‘for the development of metal-organic frameworks’,” the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said.

The laureates have developed a new form of molecular architecture. In their constructions, metal ions function as cornerstones that are linked by long organic (carbon-based) molecules. Together, the metal ions and molecules are organised to form crystals that contain large cavities. These porous materials are called metal-organic frameworks (MOF).

By varying the building blocks used in the MOFs, chemists can design them to capture and store specific substances. MOFs can also drive chemical reactions or conduct electricity.

“Metal-organic frameworks have enormous potential, bringing previously unforeseen opportunities for custom-made materials with new functions,” said Heiner Linke, Chair of the Nobel Committee for Chemistry.

Following the laureates’ groundbreaking discoveries, chemists have built tens of thousands of different MOFs.

Some of these may contribute to solving some of humankind’s greatest challenges, with applications that include separating PFAS from water, breaking down traces of pharmaceuticals in the environment, capturing carbon dioxide, or harvesting water from desert air.

Kyoto University Professor Kitagawa was born in 1951 in Kyoto, Japan. He undertook his doctorate from the varsity in 1979.

Born in 1937 in Glusburn, UK, Robson got his doctorate from the University of Oxford in 1962. He is currently working as a Professor at the University of Melbourne, Australia.

Yaghi was born in 1965 in Amman, Jordan. He got his doctorate from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, US, in 1990. He is currently a professor at the University of California, Berkeley, US. The prize money of 11 million Swedish kronor will be shared equally between the laureates.

- IANS

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Reader Comments

R
Rohit P
Carbon capture technology is exactly what we need to combat climate change. With India's growing industrial sector, this could help us meet our climate commitments while continuing development. Well-deserved Nobel!
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Arjun K
While this is impressive research, I wish we saw more Indian scientists in such prestigious awards. Our IITs and research institutions are doing great work - hope we get more global recognition soon. 🇮🇳
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Meera T
The PFAS removal from water application is crucial for India. Many of our rivers and groundwater sources are contaminated with industrial pollutants. This technology could be a game-changer for clean drinking water missions! 🙏
D
David E
Fantastic to see international collaboration in science! The researchers from US, Japan, and Australia working together shows how science transcends borders. Hope Indian researchers get involved in such global projects too.
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Sarah B
The pharmaceutical breakdown application is particularly interesting given the rising concern about antibiotic resistance and drug contamination in our water systems. This could have huge public health benefits worldwide.

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