Synthesis of cyclic carbonate from epoxide and CO2 catalyzed by magnetic nanoparticle-supported porphyrin

A magnetic nanoparticle (MNP)-supported biomimetic cobalt porphyrin as cytochrome P-450 model was designed, prepared and evaluated as an efficient catalyst for coupling reaction of epoxide and CO2 under 1.0 MPa CO2 pressure at ambient temperature to generate relevant cyclic carbonate with excellent selectivity in high yield. The supported porphyrin catalyst could be simply recycled with the assistance of an external magnet and reused for 16 times without significant loss of activity and mass. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.