Metal Organic Framework Functionalized Textiles as Protective Clothing for the Detection and Detoxification of Chemical Warfare Agents-A Review

Chemical warfare agents (CWAs) have been listed as lethal weapons of mass destruction due to their extreme toxicity and devastating effects. Detection and detoxification are essential to protect ourselves from such acutely perilous agents and have therefore generated a great deal of research interest. In this context, studies show that adsorbents such as activated carbon, metal oxides, and metal organic frameworks (MOFs) are active materials for the effective degradation of CWAs. Among them, MOFs are preferred because of their large surface area, tunable porosity, and catalytic, functional, and chemical stability properties. With this background, we comprehensively review the historical purview of the utility of CWAs, the potency of various CWAs, and their toxic profiles. Further, we discuss the research strategies reported to synthesize MOFs of desirable characteristics by tuning the synthesis parameters such as solvents, temperature, guest molecules, and organic ligands. Specifically, we highlight the multifarious studies of the impregnation of MOFs onto fibers/textiles as self-protecting fabrics using different techniques. Finally, we enumerate the challenges in developing MOFs-incorporated textiles and their functionalization toward the detection and detoxification of CWAs. As a future perspective, further requirements and possibilities of using MOF-modified textiles as wearable electronic devices for the detection and detoxification of CWAs have also been addressed.

Automated summary

The paper provides a comprehensive review of the history, toxicity, and detoxification research of chemical warfare agents (CWAs), highlighting the advantages and application prospects of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) as effective degrading agents, as well as the practical application challenges on textiles.