Heterogenization of a modified Grubbs-Hoveyda catalyst on a ROMP-derived monolithic support

A ring-opening metathesis polymerization-(ROMP) based monolith was synthesized using a Grubbs' first generation catalyst. The living termini were used for surface grafting of norborn-5-ene-2-ylmethyl hexafluoroglutarate. The free carboxylic acid groups of the graft polymer were converted into the corresponding silver salt and reacted with the Grubbs-Hoveyda catalyst [RuCl2-(=CH-(2iPrO-)C6H4)(IMesH(2))] (IMesH(2)=1,3-bis(2,4,6-trimethylphenyl)-4,5-dihydroimidazol-2-ylidene) to yield a stable heterogeneous version of this catalyst for use in ring-closing metathesis (RCM) under continuous flow conditions.