ABSTRACT
We describe a solid polyphenylene support that serves as an excellent platform for metal-catalyzed reactions that are normally carried out under homogeneous conditions. The catalyst is synthesized by palladium-catalyzed Suzuki coupling which directly results in formation of palladium nanoparticles confined to a porous polyphenylene network. The composite solid is in turn highly active for further Suzuki coupling reactions, including non-activated substrates that are challenging even for molecular catalysts.
ABSTRACT
The synthesis of 2,5-dimethylfuran (DMF) from 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) is a highly attractive route to a renewable fuel. However, achieving high yields in this reaction is a substantial challenge. Here it is described how PtCo bimetallic nanoparticles with diameters of 3.6 ± 0.7 nm can solve this problem. Over PtCo catalysts the conversion of HMF was 100% within 10 min and the yield to DMF reached 98% after 2 h, which substantially exceeds the best results reported in the literature. Moreover, the synthetic method can be generalized to other bimetallic nanoparticles encapsulated in hollow carbon spheres.