Heat and humidity can harm materials. The conditions inside smokestacks often damage materials that could remove carbon dioxide. This is especially true for metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), which remove carbon dioxide under milder conditions. To clean up the waste gases generated by industrial processes and in making energy, scientists created a new hybrid material. They combined polymers with metal ions to create an open, spongy material. The result, referred to as a polyMOF, is more stable than traditional MOFs. It also has an affinity for some gases, including carbon dioxide.