Trio wins chemistry Nobel for new form of molecular architecture

Japan’s Susumu Kitagawa, UK-born Richard Robson and American-Jordanian Omar M. Yaghi on Wednesday won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for developing so-called metal–organic frameworks, the Nobel jury said.

“These constructions, metal–organic frameworks, can be used to harvest water from desert air, capture carbon dioxide, store toxic gases or catalyse chemical reactions,” the jury said.

Commentators have for years suggested Yaghi was a strong contender for the prize, with Kitagawa’s name also often floated alongside his.

“Metal–organic frameworks have enormous potential, bringing previously unforeseen opportunities for custom-made materials with new functions,” Heiner Linke, chair of the Nobel Committee for Chemistry, said in a statement.

Last year, the chemistry prize went to Americans D