Well‐Defined Cu₂O/Cu₃(BTC)₂ Sponge Architecture as Efficient Phenolics Scavenger: Synchronous Etching and Reduction of MOFs in confined‐pH NH₃⋅H₂O

Fabrication of low‐dimensional nano‐MOFs as well as nanoparticles/metal‐organic frameworks (MOFs) hybrids has sparked new scientific interests but remains a challenging task. Taking Cu 3 (BTC) 2 as a proof of concept, it is demonstrated thats NH 3 ⋅H 2 O solution of a confined pH value can readily shape the bulk Cu 3 (BTC) 2 into nanoscale Cu 3 (BTC) 2 , beyond the need to control the crystal growth kinetics of MOFs. Adjusting the pH of NH 3 ⋅H 2 O within a much small range (10–11) allows fine tuning over the size and shape of nanoscale Cu 3 (BTC) 2 . Particularly at pH = 11, NH 3 ⋅H 2 O exhibits weak reducibility that triggers a reduction of part of Cu 3 (BTC) 2 into Cu 2 O, while shaping the other into Cu 3 (BTC) 2 nanowires. Benefiting from the coincidence of reduction and etching effects, the newly generated Cu 2 O dots can in situ anchor onto adjacent Cu 3 (BTC) 2 nanowires at highly dispersive state, forming a well‐defined sponge‐like architecture built of Cu 2 O dots and nano‐Cu 3 (BTC) 2 . The CuO x derived from annealing of the Cu 2 O dots/nano‐Cu 3 (BTC) 2 hybrid preserves the sophisticated sponge architecture and high porosity, and exhibits promising applications in phenol scavenging, with efficiency outperforming its counterparts and many other Cu‐based catalysts reported in literature. It is anticipated that the findings here pave the way for the rational design of intricate nano‐MOFs in a more efficient way.