3 scientists win 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for developing metal-organic frameworks

By Necva Tastan Sevinc

ISTANBUL (AA) - The 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded on Wednesday to three scientists – Susumu Kitagawa of Japan’s Kyoto University, Richard Robson of the University of Melbourne in Australia, and Omar M. Yaghi of the University of California, Berkeley – for their pioneering work in developing metal-organic frameworks.

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said the three laureates developed new molecular structures with spacious frameworks that allow molecules to pass through, known as metal-organic frameworks.

These structures can be used to harvest water from desert air, purify water, capture carbon dioxide, and store hydrogen.

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

Last year’s chemistry award went to David Baker of the University of Washington (Seattle) and Demis Hassabis and John Jumper of Google DeepMind for breakthroughs in computational protein design and protein structure prediction, advancing medicine and biotechnology.

The Nobel Prizes, established in accordance with the will of Swedish inventor Alfred Nobel and first awarded in 1901, are seen as some of the world’s most prestigious honors.

They are presented annually in the fields of physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature, and peace, with the economics prize later added in 1969 by Sweden’s central bank.

Since their inception, the Nobels have occasionally been suspended, 49 times, mostly during World War I and World War II. The awards were also not presented in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The laureates will receive their medals and diplomas at a ceremony in Stockholm on Dec. 10, the anniversary of Alfred Nobel’s death.