MCM-41 supported heterogeneous catalyst for the conversion of alkene to epoxide: Synthesis, characterization and catalytic studies

Abstract

A new hybrid catalyst has been prepared by the immobilization of copper(II) α-diimine complex on the surface of mesoporous silica, MCM-41. The symmetrical α-diimine ligand has been prepared from dimethyl glyoxal and p-amino benzoic acid (PABA). The catalyst has been characterized by different analytical techniques such as elemental analysis, FT-IR, N2 sorption, small angle X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), SEM and TEM. The PXRD and TEM measurements showed that the heterogeneous catalyst has mesoporosity. The catalyst has been tested in the conversion of alkene into epoxide using tert-butyl-hydroperoxide (tert-BuOOH) as oxidant in acetonitrile medium. The maximum yield (100%) was obtained with trans stilbene. The compared catalytic studies demonstrated that this catalyst is more effective in terms of reactivity and stability than its counter parts. This can be recycled and reused several times without significant loss of activity.