Bimetallic Porphyrin Metal–Organic Framework as Photocatalyst for Red-Light-Driven Selective Reduction of Nitroarenes to Aromatic Amines

Abstract

It is a great challenge to construct a green catalytic system for the reduction of nitro compounds to the corresponding amines under mild conditions. Due to the low energy of red light, it is challenging to develop photocatalytic selective reduction of nitroaromatics to aromatic amines driven by red light. A bimetallic porphyrin metal–organic framework (Bi-P(Co)MOF) was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and energy-dispersive X-ray techniques. The constructed photocatalyst Bi-PMOF-Co shows excellent catalytic activity for the conversion of nitro compounds to the corresponding amines in high to excellent yields with NaBH4 as a mild reducing agent at room temperature under red light irradiation. Moreover, the photocatalytic protocol showed excellent functional group compatibility, and the recyclability of Bi-PMOF-Co was demonstrated by five-cycle tests.