Nitrogen-Neighbored Single-Cobalt Sites Enable Heterogeneous Oxidase-Type Catalysis.

The development of biomimetic catalytic systems that can imitate or even surpass natural enzymes remains an ongoing challenge, especially for bioinspired syntheses that can access non-natural reactions. Here, we show how an all-inorganic biomimetic system bearing robust nitrogen-neighbored single-cobalt site/pyridinic-N site (Co-N4/Py-N) pairs can act cooperatively as an oxidase mimic, which renders an engaged coupling of oxygen (O2) reduction with synthetically beneficial chemical transformations. By developing this broadly applicable platform, the scalable synthesis of greater than 100 industrially and pharmaceutically appealing O-silylated compounds including silanols, borasiloxanes, and silyl ethers via the unprecedented aerobic oxidation of hydrosilane under ambient conditions is demonstrated. Moreover, this heterogeneous oxidase mimic also offers the potential for expanding the catalytic scope of enzymatic synthesis. We anticipate that the strategy demonstrated here will pave a new avenue for understanding the underlying nature of redox enzymes and open up a new class of material systems for artificial biomimetics.

An efficient noble-metal-free supported copper catalyst for selective nitrocyclohexane hydrogenation to cyclohexanone oxime.

It was shown for the first time that cyclohexanone oxime (CHO) can be selectively produced by heterogeneous copper-catalyzed hydrogenative transformation of nitrocyclohexane (NC). The combination of Cu0 and Cu+ and their cooperative interaction with weakly acidic SiO2 supports elicited a significantly unique and selective catalysis in the hydrogenation of NC to CHO.

Dehydrogenation of Formic Acid at Room Temperature: Boosting Palladium Nanoparticle Efficiency by Coupling with Pyridinic-Nitrogen-Doped Carbon.

The use of formic acid (FA) to produce molecular H2 is a promising means of efficient energy storage in a fuel-cell-based hydrogen economy. To date, there has been a lack of heterogeneous catalyst systems that are sufficiently active, selective, and stable for clean H2 production by FA decomposition at room temperature. For the first time, we report that flexible pyridinic-N-doped carbon hybrids as support materials can significantly boost the efficiency of palladium nanoparticle for H2 generation; this is due to prominent surface electronic modulation. Under mild conditions, the optimized engineered Pd/CN0.25 catalyst exhibited high performance in both FA dehydrogenation (achieving almost full conversion, and a turnover frequency of 5530 h(-1) at 25 °C) and the reversible process of CO2 hydrogenation into FA. This system can lead to a full carbon-neutral energy cycle.

Gold-Catalyzed Reductive Transformation of Nitro Compounds Using Formic Acid: Mild, Efficient, and Versatile.

Developing new efficient catalytic systems to convert abundant and renewable feedstocks into valuable products in a compact, flexible, and target-specific manner is of high importance in modern synthetic chemistry. Here, we describe a versatile set of mild catalytic conditions utilizing a single gold-based solid catalyst that enables the direct and additive-free preparation of four distinct and important amine derivatives (amines, formamides, benzimidazoles, and dimethlyated amines) from readily available formic acid (FA) and nitro starting materials with high level of chemoselectivity. By controlling the stoichiometry of the employed FA, which has attracted considerable interest in the area of sustainable chemistry because of its potential as an entirely renewable hydrogen carrier and as a versatile C1 source, a facile atom- and step-efficient transformation of nitro compounds can be realized in a modular fashion.

Deoxygenative coupling of nitroarenes for the synthesis of aromatic azo compounds with CO using supported gold catalysts.

A facile and efficient catalytic system based on a mesostructured ceria-supported gold (Au/meso-CeO2) catalyst was developed for the synthesis of various aromatic azo compounds by the reductive coupling of the corresponding nitroaromatics, using CO as the sole deoxygenative reagent, under additive-free and mild reaction conditions.

An aqueous rechargeable formate-based hydrogen battery driven by heterogeneous Pd catalysis.

The formate-based rechargeable hydrogen battery (RHB) promises high reversible capacity to meet the need for safe, reliable, and sustainable H2 storage used in fuel cell applications. Described herein is an additive-free RHB which is based on repetitive cycles operated between aqueous formate dehydrogenation (discharging) and bicarbonate hydrogenation (charging). Key to this truly efficient and durable H2 handling system is the use of highly strained Pd nanoparticles anchored on graphite oxide nanosheets as a robust and efficient solid catalyst, which can facilitate both the discharging and charging processes in a reversible and highly facile manner. Up to six repeated discharging/charging cycles can be performed without noticeable degradation in the storage capacity.

Partially reduced iridium oxide clusters dispersed on titania as efficient catalysts for facile synthesis of dimethylformamide from CO2, H2 and dimethylamine.

A novel bifunctional catalyst based on partially reduced iridium oxide supported on TiO2 was found to be exceedingly efficient for the organic-solvent-free synthesis of dimethylformamide from CO2, H2 and dimethylamine.

Gold-catalyzed direct hydrogenative coupling of nitroarenes to synthesize aromatic azo compounds.

The azo linkage is a prominent chemical motif which has found numerous applications in materials science, pharmaceuticals, and agrochemicals. Described herein is a sustainable heterogeneous-gold-catalyzed synthesis of azo arenes. Available nitroarenes are deoxygenated and linked selectively by the formation of N=N bonds using molecular H2 without any external additives. As a result of a unique and remarkable synergy between the metal and support, a facile surface-mediated condensation of nitroso and hydroxylamine intermediates is enabled, and the desired transformation proceeds in a highly selective manner under mild reaction conditions. The protocol tolerates a large variety of functional groups and offers a general and versatile method for the environmentally friendly synthesis of symmetric or asymmetric aromatic azo compounds.

Efficient and exceptionally selective semireduction of alkynes using a supported gold catalyst under a CO atmosphere.

A new efficient method for chemo- and regio-selective semireduction of alkynes using CO/H2O as the hydrogen source catalyzed by gold supported on high surface area TiO2 was developed. A facile and practical synthesis of 1,2-dideuterioalkenes was also realized by using CO/D2O as the reducing agent.

Propylene from renewable resources: catalytic conversion of glycerol into propylene.

Propylene, one of the most demanded commodity chemicals, is obtained overwhelmingly from fossil resources. In view of the diminishing fossil resources and the ongoing climate change, the identification of new efficient and alternative routes for the large-scale production of propylene from biorenewable resources has become essential. Herein, a new selective route for the synthesis of propylene from bio-derived glycerol is demonstrated. The route consists of the formation of 1-propanol (a versatile bulk chemical) as intermediate through hydrogenolysis of glycerol at a high selectivity. A subsequent dehydration produces propylene.

C-C cross-coupling of primary and secondary benzylic alcohols using supported gold-based bimetallic catalysts.

Clean alcohol-alcohol cross-coupling: A clean and efficient one-pot direct C-C cross-coupling of equimolar amounts of primary and secondary alcohols by a facile hydrogen autotransfer pathway is achieved over a robust and easily recovered hydrotalcite-supported Au-Pd bimetallic catalyst system. A variety of primary and secondary alcohols have been selectively converted into the corresponding ß-alkylated ketones in good yields.

A versatile aqueous reduction of bio-based carboxylic acids using syngas as a hydrogen source.

Syngas as a versatile hydrogen source: Using readily available and economically favorable syngas as a convenient hydrogen source, an efficient and sustainable aqueous reduction of bio-based carboxylic acids has been achieved over a highly robust catalyst system consisting of gold nanoparticles supported on acid-tolerant single-phase monoclinic zirconia (Au/m-ZrO(2)). A range of bio-based multifunctional carboxylic acids have been selectively converted into their corresponding lactones or diols in high to excellent yields.

An unusual chemoselective hydrogenation of quinoline compounds using supported gold catalysts.

The pursuit of modern sustainable chemistry has stimulated the development of innovative catalytic processes that enable chemical transformations to be performed under mild and clean conditions with high efficiency. Herein, we report that gold nanoparticles supported on TiO(2) catalyze the chemoselective hydrogenation of functionalized quinolines with H(2) under mild reaction conditions. Our results point toward an unexpected role for quinolines in gold-mediated hydrogenation reactions, namely that of promoter; this is in stark contrast to what prevails in the traditional noble metal Pd-, Pt-, and Ru-based catalyst systems, in which quinolines and their derivatives typically act as poisons. As a result of the remarkable promotional effect of quinoline molecules to H(2) activation over supported gold, the transformation can proceed smoothly under very mild conditions (even at temperatures as low as 25 °C). Of practical significance is that various synthetically useful functional groups including halogens, ketone, and olefin remain intact during the hydrogenation of quinolines. Moreover, the protocol also shows promise for the regiospecific hydrogenation of the heterocyclic ring of a variety of other biologically important heteroaromatic nitrogen compounds, such as isoquinoline, acridine, and 7,8-benzoquinoline, in a facile manner. Apart from its importance in catalytic hydrogenation, we believe that this intriguing self-promoted effect by reactant molecules may have fundamental implications for the broad field of gold catalysis and form the basis for development of new catalytic procedures for other key transformations.

Efficient subnanometric gold-catalyzed hydrogen generation via formic acid decomposition under ambient conditions.

Formic acid (FA) has tremendous potential as a safe and convenient source of hydrogen for sustainable chemical synthesis and renewable energy storage, but controlled and efficient dehydrogenation of FA by a robust solid catalyst under ambient conditions constitutes a major challenge. Here, we report that a previously unappreciated combination of subnanometric gold and an acid-tolerant oxide support facilitates the liberation of CO-free H(2) from FA. Applying an ultradispersed gold catalyst comprising TEM-invisible gold subnanoclusters deposited on zirconia to a FA-amine mixture affords turnover frequencies (TOFs) up to 1590 per hour and a turnover number of more than 118,400 at 50 °C. The reaction was accelerated at higher temperatures, but even at room temperature, a significant H(2) evolution (TOFs up to 252 h(-1) after 20 min) can still be obtained. Preliminary mechanistic studies suggest that the reaction is unimolecular in nature and proceeds via a unique amine-assisted formate decomposition mechanism on Au-ZrO(2) interface.

Highly efficient heterogeneous gold-catalyzed direct synthesis of tertiary and secondary amines from alcohols and urea.

Urea, the white gold: The efficient synthesis of tertiary and secondary amines is achieved by heterogeneous gold-catalyzed direct amination of stoichiometric alcohols with urea in good to excellent yields. Via a hydrogen autotransfer pathway, the reactions of primary alcohols with urea give tertiary amines exclusively, while secondary alcohols selectively afford secondary amines.

Mild and efficient CO-mediated eliminative deoxygenation of epoxides catalyzed by supported gold nanoparticles.

Supported gold nanoparticles (NPs), which are well-known epoxidation catalysts, were found to be exceptionally active for the selective deoxygenation of epoxides into alkenes using cheap and easily accessible CO and H(2)O as the reductant.