Reversible ammonia uptake at room temperature in a robust and tunable metal–organic framework

Ammonia is useful for the production of fertilizers and chemicals for modern technology, but its high toxicity and corrosiveness are harmful to the environment and human health. Here, we report the recyclable and tunable ammonia adsorption using a robust imidazolium-based MOF (JCM-1) that uptakes 5.7 mmol g(−1) of NH(3) at 298 K reversibly without structural deformation. Furthermore, a simple substitution of NO(3)(−) with Cl(−) in a post-synthetic manner leads to an increase in the NH(3) uptake capacity of JCM-1(Cl(−)) up to 7.2 mmol g(−1).