Facile preparation of a hierarchically porous metal-organic nanocomposite with excellent catalytic performanceElectronic supplementary information (ESI) available: Full synthetic and experimental details. See DOI: 10.1039/c6ra22650g

Herein, we report a strategy to prepare a hierarchical micro-meso-macro porous metal-organic nanocomposite, hpCuL (L = 2,4,6-tris(3,5-dicarboxylatephenylamino)-1,3,5-triazine), using a facile gel-aging process. The effect of pH values and aging time on the growth morphologies was monitored. This 3-D material, comprised of continuous metal-organic framework nanocrystallines serving as pore walls, exhibits high catalytic activity and stability towards the reduction of 4-nitrophenol by NaBH 4 in water. A hierarchical porous MOF nanocrystal, hpCuL (L = 2,4,6-tris(3,5-dicarboxylatephenylamino)-1,3,5-triazine) was prepared via a facile gel-aging process. This nanocomposite exhibits high catalytic activity and stability for the reduction of 4-nitrophenol.