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Living systems integrate complex sequential chemical reactions by spatially organizing enzymes confined inside subcellular organelles. Inspired by the ingenuity from nature, we have shown that the integrated artificial Pd cluster@porous organic cage-C3N4 catalyst can boost a series of sequential reactions, from simple two-step, to complicated multistep and even convergent catalysis. Specifically, the Pd cluster encapsulated cationic cage (Pd@C-Cage+) undergoes ionic complexation with anionic carbon nitride (C3N4–), in which C-Cage+ compartmentalizes the dual catalytic centers (Pd cluster and C3N4–) to accelerate diverse reactions via a substrate channelling effect. Moreover, the current artificial catalyst system (Pd@C-Cage+/C3N4–) is able to integrate diverse logic networks to achieve intricate digital designs by combining two concatenated AND gates and various inputs, which will inspire future chemical synthesis with enhanced efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The harmful effect of poisonous oxoanions on the water environment highlights the urgent demand for effective adsorption materials. Rather than utilizing open framework materials carrying continuous pores as oxoanion traps, nanoporous molecular cages with discrete pores show promise since they are supposed to have higher adsorption efficiency. However, they are rarely reported in the field of decontamination. Herein, we utilize a nanoporous cationic organic cage, I-Cage-Cl, as a type of adsorbent that can efficaciously and selectively trap hazardous oxoanions from aqueous solutions via anion exchange. Specifically, cationic I-Cage-Cl shows a superior uptake capacity of CrO42– (540 mg g–1) that surpasses the reported nanoporous cationic frameworks along with excellent selectivity for CrO42– even with a 500-fold excess of interfering ions (Br–, NO3–, ClO4–, and BF4–). Furthermore, we fabricate an I-Cage-SPSf composite membrane (SPSf = sulfonated polysulfone), which can rapidly reduce trace Cr-(VI) below the drinking water standard while also exhibiting extremely high water flux (80 L m–2 h–1 bar–1) and admirable reproducibility. These intriguing features indicate that nanoporous organic cages are promising candidates for wastewater treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ability to synthesize a broad spectrum of metal clusters (MCs) with their size controllable on a subnanometer scale presents an enticing prospect for exploring nanosize-dependent properties. Here we report an innovative design of a capping agent from a polytriazolium poly(ionic liquid) (PIL) in a vesicular form in solution that allows for crafting a variety of MCs including transition metals, noble metals, and their bimetallic alloy with precisely controlled sizes (∼1 nm) and record-high catalytic performance. The ultrastrong stabilization power is a result of an unusual synergy between the conventional binding sites in the heterocyclic cations in PIL and an in situ generated polycarbene structure induced simultaneously to the reduction reaction.

Organic molecular cage (CC3-R) with intrinsically porous skeleton is used as a support for immobilizing Rh nanoparticles (NPs) in an ultrasmall size of ∼1.1 nm for the first time. The CC3-R with the unique characteristic of high solubility can be utilized to homogenize the heterogeneous catalyst in solution. The obtained homogenized heterogeneous catalyst Rh/CC3-R-homo exhibits significantly enhanced catalytic performance toward various liquid-phase catalytic reactions, as compared with the heterogeneous counterpart Rh/CC3-R-hetero. Moreover, Rh/CC3-R-homo shows excellent durability and recyclability. The advantage of combining homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysts is likely to be beneficial for many applications.

A bifunctional metalloligand with metal-C (Ge-C) bonds, bis(carboxyethylgermanium) sesquioxide (H(2)E(2)Ge(2)O(3), where E = -CH(2)CH(2)COO(-)), has been used to make metal-organometallic frameworks (MOMFs) Cd(1.5)(E(3)Ge(3)O(5)) (1) and Pb(E(2)Ge(2)O(3)) (2). In the structures, the inorganic Ge(2)O(3) cores of the metalloligands polymerize to form two kinds of infinite Ge-O chains, and the organic carboxyls induce the Cd and Pb ions to produce Cd-O and Pb-O chains. Further, the Ge-O chains link the Cd-O/Pb-O chains via -CH(2)CH(2)- groups to result in two novel MOMFs, showing high thermostability and blue-violet emission.

An unusual example showing reversible interconversion of chain-like isomers under controlled experimental settings is reported, which illustrates the key role of assembly conditions for the target packing architecture with related properties. The reaction of Mn(II) ions with an organic ligand 2-hydroxypyrimidine-4,6-dicarboxylic acid (H(3)hpdc) at room temperature gives a coordination polymer {[Mn(3)(hpdc)(2)(H(2)O)(6)] x 2 H(2)O}(n) containing parallel staggered stacking, whereas the reaction under hydrothermal conditions at 150 degrees C affords a compound {[Mn(3)(hpdc)(2)(H(2)O)(6)] x H(2)O}(n) possessing plywood-like stacking. Interestingly, two compounds contain similar one-dimensional chain components with different orientations that can be controlled by thermodynamic factors. Thermally triggered reversible interconversion of the two compounds was verified by X-ray powder, IR, and element analysis. The spin-canted antiferromagnetic behaviors are observed in as-synthesized samples, and the influence of chain orientations on magnetic properties has been detected.