Composites of metal-organic frameworks and carbon-based materials: preparations, functionalities and applications

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), assembled by metal ions or their clusters and organic linkers, are one of the state-of-the-art crystalline materials. Their features such as ultra-high porosity, synthetic tailorability and relative ease of synthesis make them promising candidates for diversified applications. Controllable integration of MOFs and carbon-based materials not only leads to further enhancement of single-phase MOFs in terms of stability and electrical conductivity, but also surprisingly brings about a number of new functionalities like formation of new pores and template effects. These benefits allow the resultant MOF-carbon composites to be applied beyond the fields of single-phase MOFs. Increasing research interests have been aroused in this rapidly developing interdisciplinary area. This review aims to specifically group together the important reports focused on MOF-carbon composites till now. The methods used for composite synthesis and applications of the composites are investigated and categorized. The review also exclusively discusses the functionalities stemming from the synergistic effects of the two intriguing materials and pictures the future prospects at the end.