Covalent Organic Frameworks for Piezocatalysis, Piezo-Photocatalysis and Piezoelectric Energy Harvesting
- 1School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510641, China
- 2Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Multi-Energy Complementary Distributed Energy Systems, School of Chemical Engineering and Energy Technology, Dongguan University of Technology, Dongguan 523808, China
- 3Innovation Catalysis Team, School of Chemical Engineering and Energy Technology, Dongguan University of Technology, Dongguan 523808, China
Abstract
Low-grade mechanical energy widely exists in natural environments, such as ocean-wave fluctuation, industrial vibration and human-body motion, yet most of this energy remains underutilized. Piezocatalysis, piezo-photocatalysis and piezoelectric nanogenerators (PENGs) provide feasible routes to convert ambient mechanical-vibration energy into chemical energy and usable electricity. Distinct from conventional inorganic piezoelectric materials suffering from low specific surface area and limited structural tunability, covalent organic frameworks (COFs) possess tailorable skeletons, high porosity, excellent chemical–thermal stability and modular symmetry-engineering capability. Non-centrosymmetric COFs with intrinsic piezoelectric responses can be realized via rational monomer-level design. Nevertheless, research on piezoelectric-related COFs-based systems is still in its early exploratory stage, and comprehensive reviews covering piezocatalysis, piezo-photocatalysis and piezoelectric energy harvesting remain scarce. This review addresses both intrinsic piezoelectric COFs and COFs-containing hybrid composite systems. Notably, performance gains in composite systems cannot be simply attributed to the intrinsic piezoelectric response of the COFs component. We systematically discuss their fundamental mechanisms, unique flexible-pore electromechanical features, multi-scale modification strategies, diverse application scenarios, and unresolved challenges. We discuss the applicability and inherent limitations of core piezocatalytic interpretive frameworks for flexible porous COFs systems. Five mainstream strategies for boosting COF piezoresponse are summarized: building-block molecular design, defect engineering, morphology modulation, single-atom metal anchoring and heterostructure construction. Representative applications including water-energy conversion, CO2 reduction, organic-pollutant remediation, uranium (VI) reduction, antibacterial disinfection and mechanical-energy harvesting are presented. Key bottlenecks covering mechanistic ambiguity, characterization constraints, synthetic hurdles and long-term practical stability are highlighted, and targeted future research directions are proposed. This review offers instructive guidelines for developing high-performance symmetry-engineered COFs-based piezofunctional systems.
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BibTeX
@article{zhang2026covalent,
title = {{Covalent Organic Frameworks for Piezocatalysis, Piezo-Photocatalysis and Piezoelectric Energy Harvesting}},
author = {Kailai Zhang and Ao Feng and Gan Wang and Hang Chen and Shurui Xu and Guoyu Zhong and Baizeng Fang},
journal = {Nanomaterials},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3390/nano16211350},
url = {https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/16/21/1350},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Covalent Organic Frameworks for Piezocatalysis, Piezo-Photocatalysis and Piezoelectric Energy Harvesting
AU - Kailai Zhang
AU - Ao Feng
AU - Gan Wang
AU - Hang Chen
AU - Shurui Xu
AU - Guoyu Zhong
AU - Baizeng Fang
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/24
JO - Nanomaterials
DO - 10.3390/nano16211350
UR - https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/16/21/1350
AB - Low-grade mechanical energy widely exists in natural environments, such as ocean-wave fluctuation, industrial vibration and human-body motion, yet most of this energy remains underutilized. Piezocatalysis, piezo-photocatalysis and piezoelectric nanogenerators (PENGs) provide feasible routes to convert ambient mechanical-vibration energy into chemical energy and usable electricity. Distinct from conventional inorganic piezoelectric materials suffering from low specific surface area and limited structural tunability, covalent organic frameworks (COFs) possess tailorable skeletons, high porosity, excellent chemical–thermal stability and modular symmetry-engineering capability. Non-centrosymmetric COFs with intrinsic piezoelectric responses can be realized via rational monomer-level design. Nevertheless, research on piezoelectric-related COFs-based systems is still in its early exploratory stage, and comprehensive reviews covering piezocatalysis, piezo-photocatalysis and piezoelectric energy harvesting remain scarce. This review addresses both intrinsic piezoelectric COFs and COFs-containing hybrid composite systems. Notably, performance gains in composite systems cannot be simply attributed to the intrinsic piezoelectric response of the COFs component. We systematically discuss their fundamental mechanisms, unique flexible-pore electromechanical features, multi-scale modification strategies, diverse application scenarios, and unresolved challenges. We discuss the applicability and inherent limitations of core piezocatalytic interpretive frameworks for flexible porous COFs systems. Five mainstream strategies for boosting COF piezoresponse are summarized: building-block molecular design, defect engineering, morphology modulation, single-atom metal anchoring and heterostructure construction. Representative applications including water-energy conversion, CO2 reduction, organic-pollutant remediation, uranium (VI) reduction, antibacterial disinfection and mechanical-energy harvesting are presented. Key bottlenecks covering mechanistic ambiguity, characterization constraints, synthetic hurdles and long-term practical stability are highlighted, and targeted future research directions are proposed. This review offers instructive guidelines for developing high-performance symmetry-engineered COFs-based piezofunctional systems.
SN - 2079-4991
ER -