Efficiency ofMOFs in Water Treatment Against the Emerging Water Contaminants Such as Endocrine Disruptors, Pharmaceuticals, Microplastics, Pesticides, and Other Contaminants

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have received a significant amount of attention as a major resource for removing emerging water contaminants from the aqueous phase. Emerging water contaminants (ECs) are pollutants that will become difficult to detect. ECs are now a worldwide problem in the aquatic environment such as pesticides, endocrine disruptors (EDs), personal care products (PCPs), microplastics (MPs), food additives, plasticizers, pharmaceutical drugs, hormones, laundry detergents, wood preservatives, dispersants, antiseptics, flame retardants, and other organic compounds that were found recently in natural wastewater stream produced by human and industrial activities. There are contaminants that are frequently detected in flora and fauna as well as in human beings. Thus, the burning issue of water pollution by these noxious contributors poses a serious concern. The conventional methods of water treatment do not possess enough potential to eliminate or destroy these harmful contaminants. MOFs have several benefits over previous approaches because of their better adsorption capacity, large surface area, cost-effectiveness, changeable pore structure, rigid hierarchy, and biodegradability. MOFs are versatile enough to be used for both adsorption and photocatalysis. The present article summarizes the synthesis methods of MOFs and their utilization for the removal of emerging water contaminants.