Metal-organic frameworks for energy conversion and water harvesting: A bridge between thermal engineering and material science

Adsorption technologies for Heat Conversion (AHC) and Water Harvesting (AWH) hold great potential for energy management because they can utilize renewable energy or low-grade heat resources. A keystone for the successful implementation of these technologies is the properties of the adsorbent. Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) show tremendous promise for these applications, owing to their high adsorption capacity and the possibility of target-specific design. However, there are several challenges to be solved, namely, low hydrothermal stability of MOFs, high cost, and complicated synthesis. The further progress of these technologies depends on the inter-disciplinary research in Applied Thermal Engineering (ATE) and Materials Science (MS) and close collaboration between these two scientific societies is required. In this review, we try to bridge the gap between ATE and MS scientists. To this purpose, the principles of AHC and AWH are described, the specific features of adsorbents needed for AHC and AWH are defined, and promising MOFs are considered. MOFs fabrication strategies and long-term reliability are viewed. Finally, we provide some perspectives on advanced MOFs promising for continuously-operating and scalable AHC and AWH systems. [Display omitted] •This review reveals a problem with overestimating the performance indicators for MOFs used for adsorption heat conversion.•This review provides toolkits to bridge the difference in research methodology of material and applied scientists.•The performance evaluation methodologies of adsorption heat conversion and water harvesting using MOFs are discussed.•Opportunities and challenges of MOFs to satisfy the requirements of energy conversion and water harvesting are shown.•Further progress in these technologies requires interdisciplinary researches in applied engineering and materials science.