Efficient iron single-atom catalysts for selective ammoxidation of alcohols to nitriles.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 35387970.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-022-29074-1 and PMC identifier 8986860.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
Zeolitic imidazolate frameworks derived Fe<sub>1</sub>-N-C catalysts with isolated single iron atoms have been synthesized and applied for selective ammoxidation reactions. For the preparation of the different Fe-based materials, benzylamine as an additive proved to be essential to tune the morphology and size of ZIFs resulting in uniform and smaller particles, which allow stable atomically dispersed Fe-N<sub>4</sub> active sites. The optimal catalyst Fe<sub>1</sub>-N-C achieves an efficient synthesis of various aryl, heterocyclic, allylic, and aliphatic nitriles from alcohols in water under very mild conditions. With its chemoselectivity, recyclability, high efficiency under mild conditions this new system complements the toolbox of catalysts for nitrile synthesis, which are important intermediates with many applications in life sciences and industry.