Enhanced uranium extraction from aqueous solution using hollow ZIF-8

Recently, highly porous metal–organic frameworks (MOFs), with excellent porosity and abundant functional groups, have represented a new addition to the area of capturing uranium ion pollutants. To achieve high adsorption capacity and removal efficiency of uranium, it is significant to modify the morphology of MOF-based adsorbents. In this contribution, two hollow structured ZIF-8 adsorbents were used for the adsorptive separation of uranium from aqueous solution. Both of them showed faster adsorption rate and larger adsorption capacity than pristine ZIF-8, providing the prospect of hollow MOF materials to the application of uranium extraction.