Immobilization techniques mesoporous silica

The above example outlines a general problem in immobilized molecular catalysts - multiple types of sites are often produced. To this end, we are developing techniques to prepare well-defined immobilized organometallic catalysts on silica supports with isolated catalytic sites (7). Our new strategy is demonstrated by creation of isolated titanium complexes on a mesoporous silica support. These new materials are characterized in detail and their catalytic properties in test reactions (polymerization of ethylene) indicate improved catalytic performance over supported catalysts prepared via conventional means (8). The generality of this catalyst design approach is discussed and additional immobilized metal complex catalysts are considered. 

The same authors compared catalysts prepared from these precursors and [Ru(BINAP)Cl2]2 adsorbed on MCM-41 (with 26 and 37 A pores) and an amorphous mesoporous silica (with 68 A pores) all treated with combinations of SiPh2Cl2 and Si(CH2)3X (X = NH2, CO2H). Catalysts were also prepared in which the organometallic precursors were immobilized by entrapment into silica (using sol-gel techniques). This is one of the few studies in which the performance of chiral phosphine catalysts immobilized by covalent and noncovalent procedures are compared directly. The materials were examined as catalysts for the hydrogenation of sodium a-acetamidocinnamate and of a-acetamidocinnamic acid under similar conditions to those used for the catalysts on unmodified MCM-41. The catalysts... 

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