Harvesting visible light for aerobic oxidation of alcohols by a novel and efficient hybrid polyoxometalate

Herein, the synthesis, characterization and photocatalytic application of a novel hybrid polyoxometalate, which can absorb light in the visible region, are reported. This hybrid material was synthesized by attaching a monovacant polyoxometalate, (SiW11O39), through a (3-aminopropyl)triethoxysilane linker to the anthracene. The hybridization with anthracene drastically decreased the band gap of the polyoxometalate and made it a good candidate for utilization in photocatalytic applications under visible light. In this aspect, this photocatalyst was used for the oxidation of alcohols into the corresponding carbonyl compounds under an O-2 atmosphere. Different benzylic and aliphatic alcohols were treated in the presence of this photocatalyst under the optimum reaction conditions and provided the corresponding carbonyl compounds in high yields.