Direct Synthesis of an Iridium(III) Bipyridine Metal-Organic Framework as a Heterogeneous Catalyst for Aerobic Alcohol Oxidation

The heterogenization of an Ir-III complex is accomplished by the modification of a nanoporous Ga-based metal-organic framework ( MOF), denoted as COMOC-4. The introduction of the Ir complex was performed successfully through two different strategies ( post-and prefunctionalization). The obtained Irbased MOF materials were compared in terms of the Ir loading, specific surface area, and crystallinity. In this case, the prefunctionalization approach was a powerful way to obtain a high Ir loading and surface area and preserve the formation of the de-sired MOF topology. The (IrCp)-Cp-III*Cl-COMOC-4 ( Cp*= 1,2,3,4,5-pentamethylcyclopentadienyl) material exhibits a good catalytic performance in the oxidation of benzyl alcohol using O-2 as a clean oxidant. Furthermore, the stability and reusability were examined and showed that the (IrCp)-Cp-III*Cl-COMOC-4 material could be reused for at least four cycles with no decrease in activity and selectivity. Additionally, no significant leaching of the Ir and Ga species or loss of the crystallinity was observed.