Synthesizing ammonia, the key ingredient in fertilizer, is energy intensive and a significant contributor to greenhouse gas warming of the planet. Chemists designed and synthesized porous materials — metal-organic frameworks, or MOFs — that bind and release ammonia at more moderate pressures and temperatures than the standard Haber-Bosch process for making ammonia. The MOF doesn’t bind to any of the reactants, making capture and release of ammonia less energy intensive and greener.
