In flow-based technologies: A new paradigm for the synthesis and processing of covalent-organic frameworks

Nearly twenty years since the discovery of covalent-organic frameworks (COFs), most of the research on these materials has been focused on the rational design of new structures. Recently, the quest for discovering the functionalities and potential applications of these crystalline materials has attracted the attention of many researchers. While the number of reports regarding these two aspects within the COF research area is continuously growing, in order to achieve their full potential, the processability aspect of COFs also needs to be addressed. In this review article, we examine the opportunities that flow-based technologies offer regarding (a) the continuous synthesis of COFs, and (b) the processing of these materials into functional surfaces and devices (e.g. thin films and 3D structures), both aspects being ultimately amenable to industrial scale up.