Exploiting Metal–Organic Frameworks for Vinylidene Fluoride Adsorption: From Force Field Development, Computational Screening to Machine Learning

Metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) represent a distinctive class of nanoporous materials with considerable potential across a wide range of applications. Recently, a handful of MOFs has been explored for the storage of environmentally hazardous fluorinated gases (Keasler et al. Science 2023, 381, 1455), yet the potential of over 100,000 MOFs for this specific application has not been thoroughly investigated, particularly due to the absence of an established force field. In this study, we develop an accurate force field for nonaversive hydrofluorocarbon vinylidene fluoride (VDF) and conduct high-throughput computational screening to identify top-performing MOFs with high VDF adsorption capacities. Quantitative structure–property relationships are analyzed via machine learning models on the combinations of geometric, chemical, and topological features, followed by feature importance analysis to probe the effects of these features on VDF adsorption. Finally, from detailed structural analysis via radial distribution functions and spatial densities, we elucidate the significance of different interaction modes between VDF and metal nodes in top-performing MOFs. By synergizing force-field development, computational screening, and machine learning, our findings provide microscopic insights into VDF adsorption in MOFs that will advance the development of new nanoporous materials for high-performance VDF storage or capture.