Development of a Metal-Organic Framework/Textile Composite for the Rapid Degradation and Sensitive Detection of the Nerve Agent VX

Martijn C. De Koning*, Kaikai Ma, Marco Van Grol, Ivan Iordanov, Melvin J.L. Kruijne, Karam B. Idrees, Haomiao Xie, Timur Islamoglu, Rowdy P.T. Bross, Omar K. Farha

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

11 Scopus citations

Abstract

In the case of an incident with nerve agents, the timely and ready detection and identification of such a substance on suspected surfaces is essential. However, the detection of low levels of nerve agents on a surface is a considerable challenge for conventional detection equipment, especially with VX, a highly toxic nerve agent with low volatility. Here, we report the development of a metal-organic framework (MOF)/fabric composite that gives a rapid, visual, and sensitive color response when pre-wetted and rubbed over a VX-contaminated surface. The fabric is composed of cotton textile modified with the zirconium-based MOF MOF-808 that possesses a bidentate reactive dye, ditopic 5,5-dithiobis(2-nitrobenzoic acid) (DTNB), on its nodes. The crystal structure of DTNB@MOF-808 showed that DTNB bridges between two adjacent nodes in MOF-808. The colorless composite changes to bright orange upon contact with VX as a result of the degradation of VX and the concomitant reaction of the dye with a VX degradation product in the MOF pores.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)1269-1277
Number of pages9
JournalChemistry of Materials
Volume34
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Feb 8 2022

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Chemistry(all)
  • Chemical Engineering(all)
  • Materials Chemistry

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