Gas Purification and Separation

Efficient molecular separation and purification are essential steps in sustainable chemical production, yet separation processes remain among the largest energy consumers in industry. Advanced porous materials offer sustainable alternatives by enabling separation through selective adsorption and molecular sieving, using differences in molecular size, shape, polarity, affinity, and transport. Our research focuses on the rational design of crystalline microporous inorganic and hybrid inorganic–organic materials, including metal–organic frameworks and their composites, with precisely tunable pore geometries, network topologies, and chemical functionalities. A key scientific challenge is to understand and control the subtle molecular interactions and transport processes that determine selectivity when the components of a mixture are intrinsically difficult to distinguish. Therefore, we combine materials synthesis, structural characterization, adsorption and separation studies as well as molecular simulation to establish quantitative relationships between pore structure, host–guest interactions, adsorption thermodynamics, molecular diffusion, and separation performance. We investigate how pore architecture, chemical functionality, framework flexibility, defects, and host–guest interactions can be controlled to achieve the selectivity, capacity, and stability required for challenging molecular separations. Particular emphasis is placed on understanding and overcoming the fundamental origins of selectivity, especially where molecules have similar size, shape, polarity, or adsorption affinity.

Our research addresses the critical gap between fundamental materials knowledge and practical separation performance. We seek to establish quantitative structure–property relationships that enable the rational design and processing of materials under realistic operating conditions, rather than optimizing materials only under ideal laboratory conditions. By combining molecular-level understanding with synthesis, processing, characterization, and application-oriented testing, we aim to translate advances in porous-materials chemistry into scalable, energy-efficient, and robust separation technologies. Our goal is to develop the fundamental principles and materials strategies needed to move from molecular understanding to materials design and controlled processing in order to achieve selective transport and realistic process performance, thereby accelerating the transition of advanced porous materials from scientific discovery to real-world application.

Chemical sensing

Chemical sensors play a key role in modern society, spanning industrial process monitoring, environmental control, healthcare, automotive and aerospace technologies, and safety and security. However, current sensing technologies based on conventional inorganic oxides, organic polymers, and related materials often remain limited by sensitivity, selectivity, stability, and reliable operation in complex environments, particularly when target molecules must be distinguished from chemically similar interferents. Our research addresses these challenges through the molecular design of porous inorganic and hybrid inorganic–organic materials, with a particular focus on selective molecular recognition in confined spaces.

Controlled microporosity provides defined environments for molecular adsorption and pre-concentration, while the composition and functionality of pore walls can be tailored to establish specific host–guest interactions and discriminate between chemically similar molecules. These interactions can be coupled to responsive physical properties—including optical, electrical, and luminescent responses—to translate molecular recognition into measurable signals. In particular, the integration of functional centres such as lanthanides with porous architectures provides opportunities to combine molecular selectivity with sensitive signal transduction and, where appropriate, multiple sensing modalities. By linking molecular interactions, confinement, material structure, and signal generation, we aim to establish fundamental structure–property relationships that guide the rational design of highly selective and sensitive sensing materials. Our aim is to bridge the gap between molecular-level understanding and practical sensor technologies by integrating these materials into thin films, nanoparticles, sensing layers, and miniature devices and evaluating their performance under realistic operating conditions.

Energy Storage and Conversion

The transition towards sustainable energy requires materials that can efficiently store, transport, and convert chemical, electrical, and solar energy, while operating with high efficiency, durability, and low material and processing costs. Current technologies such as fuel cells, electrolyzers, batteries, and solar-energy devices are often limited by the performance and stability of their constituent materials, including insufficient ionic or electronic conductivity, degradation under operating conditions, sluggish reaction kinetics, and inefficient transport across complex interfaces. Our research addresses some of these challenges through the molecular and solid-state design of inorganic and hybrid functional materials, with particular emphasis on controlling chemical composition, porosity, interfaces, and nanoscale organization to regulate charge, ion, proton, and molecular transport. We aim to bridge the gap between molecular-level materials design and performance of the materials in realistic conditions. We investigate how structural features, interfaces and degradation mechanisms evolve under realistic operating conditions and how these factors collectively determine material’s performance. By combining inorganic and solid-state chemistry with materials synthesis, nanoscale characterization, electrochemistry, and device integration, we seek general principles for designing stable, efficient, and multifunctional materials for energy conversion and storage.