Magnetically Separable Microporous Fe–Porphyrin Networks for Catalytic Carbene Insertion into N–H Bonds

Abstract

Microporous organic networks (MONs) are a new class of porous materials. This work shows the application of MON chemistry for the preparation of magnetically separable catalytic systems. By the Sonogashira coupling of FeIII–tetrakis(4-ethynylphenyl)porphyrin and 1,4-diiodobenzene, Fe3O4 nanoparticles were coated successfully with Fe–porphyrin networks. The average thickness of the homogeneous coating was ∼17 nm. According to the powder X-ray diffraction and N2 isotherm analyses, the Fe–porphyrin network coating exhibited amorphous and microporous characteristics. The microporous Fe–porphyrin networks on the Fe3O4 nanoparticles showed good catalytic performance for carbene insertion into the N–H bond of amines. The catalytic systems were easily recycled from the reaction mixture by magnetic separation. We believe that the synthetic strategy in this work can be extended to the various catalytic systems.