The foreword to this special issue of the Journal dedicated to Professor Richard Robson provides an account of his distinguished career and his pioneering work in the field of coordination polymers and metal–organic frameworks.

Strategies involving the use of metalloligands have increasingly been applied to the synthesis of a variety of metallosupramolecular cage assemblies. The popularity of this approach reflects its stepwise nature that lends itself to the predesigned construction of metallocages and especially heteronuclear metallocages. Recent representative developments for the construction of discrete polyhedral metallocages are presented.

The reactions of bispyridyl ketones with resorcinol derivatives resulted in co-crystals containing predicted assemblies, whereas those with poly carboxylic acids resulted in salts with versatile assemblies.

Six coordination polymers based on 1,3,5-tri-4-pyridyl-1,2-ethenylbenzene have been solvothermally prepared. They possess 1D chain structures (1–3), 2D layer network (4), and 3D (3,5)-connected nets (5 and 6). Complex 2 displays efficient photodegradation of rhodamine B in water while 5 presents highly selective probing of p-nitrophenol through fluorescence quenching.

The diruthenium(ii) complex involving a di(terpyridine) ligand exists in double-stranded helicate and mesocate forms. Structural and NMR studies reveal significant differences between the two structures in cavity sizes, crystal packing, and rigidity. Both species emit at ~610 nm at 77 K, but emission lifetimes differ by three orders of magnitude.

[Fe^II(L^•)₂][TCNQF₄^•−]₂·2CH₃CN (1) shows multiple well-resolved, diffusion-controlled, reversible one-electron processes.

Six new lanthanide chloranilate framework materials featuring a square grid topology are reported. Two different coordination environments around the lanthanide ion were found, being dependent on the ion size. The larger lanthanide ions (La, Ce, Nd) were nine-coordinate with a coordinated aqua ligand whereas the smaller lanthanide ions (Sm, Eu) were eight-coordinate.

Trigonal triazatruxene-based tricarboxylate ligands with various substituents give rise to a series of interesting frameworks in association with zinc(ii).

Subtle changes in the coordination sphere of the metal node induce changes in structure that transform a material with excellent CO₂/N₂ separation performance to one that is essentially non-porous.

Monomeric and oxo-bridged dimeric manganese complexes of two flexible, anionic, [1 + 1] macrocycles, derived from diphenylamine-2,2′-dicarboxaldehyde and either diethyl- or dipropylenetriamine, are reported: both facial and meridional binding modes are observed.

Solvothermal reaction of pure 2-nitro-[1,1′‐biphenyl]‐4,4′‐dicarboxylic acid (H₂bpdcNO₂) with Zn(NO₃)₂·6H₂O in DMF solvent gives two highly open MOFs with pentazinc and dodecazinc secondary building units. Spiking H₂bpdcNO₂ with H₂bpdc directs phase selection to the IRMOF-9-type framework. The gas adsorption properties of the latter framework are discussed.

A turquoise crystalline Cu^II coordination polymer has a topology related to that of a 12,3 net. Removal of guest solvent produces a crystalline phase which chemisorbs, stepwise, two equivalents of ammonia per Cu site to produce a mauve adduct which is stable up to ~150°C before the reversible desorption of the chemisorbed NH₃ (10 cycles).

A new thiosemicarbazone-pyridylhydrazone tetradentate ligand featuring a pyridyl-4-vinylpyridine functional group that forms a stable complex with copper(ii) was prepared. The ligand could be radiolabelled with positron-emitting copper-64. The interaction of the copper(ii) complex with amyloid-β fibrils and plaques are described.

Chloro-functionalization of aluminium fumarate (MIL-53-Fum) enhances gas (CO₂, CH₄, and H₂) sorption capacities and affinity compared with the non-functionalized MIL-53-Fum MOF

C–N bond formation reactions are generally central to catalytic organic synthesis. The recently reported Ni/CdS/TiO₂@MIL-101 photocatalyst dehydrogenates alcohols under visible light illumination via liberation of H₂. This additive and noble metal free approach allows for photocatalytic C–N multiple bond formation by dehydrogenative coupling/condensation reactions employing alcohols and amines.

Polymer acids were used to control the growth the zirconium-based metal–organic framework UiO-66. In contrast to UiO-66 modulated by small molecules, structurally analogous polymer acids provide small particle sizes and narrow size distributions over a wide concentration range, including highly sub-stoichiometric.