Coordination polymer networks with s-block metal ions

Alkali and alkaline earth metal cations form the s-block elements of the periodic table where they belong to the Groups I and 2, respectively. They play an important role in nature, for instance alkali cations Li+, Na+ and K+ have very specific functions such as the regulation of the ionic equilibrium of living cells in our body. Alkaline earth cations also have a contribution in our body, for instance calcium is the most important constituent of our organism. They above all, and always, find applications in man-made materials in a wide range of fields: catalysts, ferroelectrics, metallic conductors and superconductor materials. They are known for their mainly ionic chemistry in aqueous medium, and a varying coordination number, depending on the size of the binding partners as well as on electrostatic interactions between the ligands and the metal ions. This makes the strategic synthesis of coordination polymer networks with these metal ions a challenge and explains why few systematic results in the generation of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are found in the literature. This review highlights the recent results in the field, bringing together the systematic approaches with results obtained by serendipity, to give an overview on current and future possibilities. (c) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.