A molybdate-incorporated cooperative catalyst: High efficiency in the assisted tandem catalytic synthesis of cyclic carbonates from CO2 and olefins

Abstract Currently, substantial interest is focused on developing assisted tandem catalysis to optimize the reaction conditions for each step in the process. By combining a molybdate oxidation catalyst and alkaline μ3-OH tricopper (II) cores into a metal-organic framework (MOF), a bifunctional catalyst, Cu3(μ3-OH)2(4,4′-BPY)(MoO4)2 (CuMo-BPY, BPY = 4,4′-bipyridine), was achieved and successfully explored for the assisted tandem catalytic conversion of olefins into value-added cyclic carbonates. CuMo-BPY displayed a three-dimensional (3D) extended network of two-dimensional (2D) inorganic CuMo layers interconnected with 4,4′-bipyridine groups. Two potential catalytic sites, Mo(VI) oxide (an oxidant for the epoxidation of olefins) and the alkaline μ3-OH of tricopper (II) cores (for the capture and activation of CO2), exhibit an orderly distribution and spatial matching in the framework, which can provide further compatibility with the Mo=Ot-activated epoxidation intermediate to drive tandem catalysis in a single workup stage.