Recent Advances in Environmental Aspects of 3D-Printed MOF Composites

Environmental pollution poses a significant challenge for modern society, making the advancement of environmental management a critical priority. As porous coordination polymers, metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) exhibit tunable nanostructures, high porosity and large specific surface areas, making MOFs and their derivatives or composites highly promising for environmental applications. Despite the numerous advantages of MOF composites, their rigid and brittle powder morphology presents significant obstacles to their recyclability and reusability. 3D printing (3DP) offers an effective approach to address these limitations by enabling the rapid fabrication of customized devices with complex lattice geometries and hierarchical porosity. This review systematically reveals, for the first time, the cross-scale structure-performance relationship from “structural regulation” to “performance applications.” This review commences with an overview of the principles and process of 3DP MOF composites. It then proceeds to examine the fabrication techniques and device configurations used in producing 3D-printed MOF composites, along with their applications in environmental management. Finally, it evaluates the current challenges and opportunities in this field and outlines future directions for the development of 3D-printed MOF composites in environmental technologies.