Novel semiconducting iron–quinizarin metal–organic framework for application in supercapacitors^*

* Dedication to Prof Alan Soper FRS: We are pleased to submit this article for the special edition to mark the retirement of Prof. Alan Soper. Alan was a central figure in our previous work addressing the structure of supercapacitor ionic solutions and hence it is appropriate for this work that considers novel materials for supercapacitor electrodes. Alan has been a very significant figure in our scientific world, particularly through his development of total scattering to address the structural solution of complex fluids. There can be no doubt that this dynamic and active area of science owes a great deal to Alan’s pioneering work and particularly his efforts to make data analysis accessible for a wide range of users. We, like many others, came to this area through Alan’s enormous scientific input. However, in addition, and possibly more importantly, he is the most pleasant of men – unfailingly charming and helpful, to even the most troublesome of users.

Abstract

We present conductivity data for a newly synthesised metal–organic framework FeQ, Fe(C₁₄H₆O₄).H₂O demonstrating significant electronic transport. The electrical conductivity of the material is expected to be through the π–π interaction of the ligand-quinizarin and is measured to be 1.73 × 10⁻² Scm⁻¹_. Its potential role as supercapacitor electrodes is discussed.

GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT

KEYWORDS:

• Metal–organic framework
• semiconducting
• supercapacitor
• MOF
• porous channels

Acknowledgements

We thank the Cambridge Trust and BP-Clare Hall India Innovation Masters Studentship for providing financial support for this work. We are grateful to Dr Matthew Cliff, Dr Andrew Flewitt, Dr Giulio Lampronti, Mr Steffen Emge, Mr Alan Dickerson, Mr Zlatko Sarasevic, Dr Changshin Jo, Dr Sian Dutton and Mr Stephen Young for assistance and guidance with the work conducted in this paper.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

* Dedication to Prof Alan Soper FRS: We are pleased to submit this article for the special edition to mark the retirement of Prof. Alan Soper. Alan was a central figure in our previous work addressing the structure of supercapacitor ionic solutions and hence it is appropriate for this work that considers novel materials for supercapacitor electrodes. Alan has been a very significant figure in our scientific world, particularly through his development of total scattering to address the structural solution of complex fluids. There can be no doubt that this dynamic and active area of science owes a great deal to Alan’s pioneering work and particularly his efforts to make data analysis accessible for a wide range of users. We, like many others, came to this area through Alan’s enormous scientific input. However, in addition, and possibly more importantly, he is the most pleasant of men – unfailingly charming and helpful, to even the most troublesome of users.