Insights into Amorphous Metal‐Organic Framework as Carbonic Anhydrase Mimic

Abstract

AbstractCarbonic anhydrase (CA) is an important enzyme which breaks the C−O bond and catalyzes the hydration of CO2 and developing artificial enzyme to mimic the function of CA is important for the related applications. Zeolitic imidazolate frameworks (ZIFs) with typical tetrahedral Zn−N coordination units which were similar to the catalytically active site of natural CA have been reported to displayed CA‐like activities. However, the activity of crystalline ZIFs remains unsatisfactory. Herein, amorphous zeolitic imidazolate framework (aZIF) was fabricated through a facile self‐assembly process and exhibited 2.2‐fold higher CA‐like hydrolytic activity than the corresponding crystalline ZIF‐8.This phenomenon can be ascribed to the unsaturated Zn−N coordination structure and mesopores inside aZIF. This work affords a new avenue for the rational design of nanozymes.