Catalysis of N‐Methylaniline‐Blocked Polyisocyanate‐Hydroxyl‐Terminated Polybutadiene Cure Reaction

Catalysis of cure reaction between N‐methylaniline‐blocked polyisocyanate and hydroxyl‐terminated polybutadiene was investigated using a variety of tertiary amine and organotin catalysts. The catalytic activity of amine and organotin compounds was determined from the cure‐time results. It was found that the activity of the catalyst depends upon the steric constrain around the catalytic center. The organotin compounds showed higher catalytic activity than the amine catalysts. FTIR results obtained under isothermal condition revealed that DABCO selectively catalyze the urethane formation reaction, whereas DBTDL catalyze both the allophanate formation and urethane formation reactions during curing process. The synergistic effect of amine and organotin mixed catalysts on the cure reaction was also investigated.     

Catalysis of poly(urethane imidine) copolymer formation from amine‐blocked isocyanate and bisphthalide

The catalysis of imidine formation between an amine‐blocked polyurethane prepolymer and bisphthalide was studied with a series of metal alkoxides, phenoxides, and organotin compounds and tertiary amines. The carbon dioxide released during the reaction was followed for monitoring of the reaction. The metal alkoxides and phenoxides catalyzed the imidine formation reaction but did not catalyze the deblocking reaction, whereas the organotin compounds and tertiary amines showed no catalytic activity in the reaction between isocyanate and phthalide. With tin catalysts, the imidine formation reaction depended on the deblocking of the blocked prepolymer, but it was independent of deblocking with amine catalysts. The resultant poly(urethane imidine) copolymers were characterized with Fourier transform infrared, ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR, gel permeation chromatography, and thermogravimetric analysis techniques. The thermal stability of polyurethane increased significantly with the incorporation of imidine groups. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 39: 4236–4242, 2001     

New organotin catalysts in urethane and polyurethane technology

The use of organotin α-substituted alcohols and carbamates as catalysts has been investigated in urethane and polyurethane preparations. These compounds have been shown to be new and very active catalysts. The mechanism of the reaction has been studied.     

Hydrogen storage and delivery: immobilization of a highly active homogeneous catalyst for the decomposition of formic acid to hydrogen and carbon dioxide

The homogeneous catalytic system, based on water-soluble ruthenium(II)–TPPTS catalyst (TPPTS = meta-trisulfonated triphenylphosphine), selectively decomposes HCOOH into H₂ and CO₂ in aqueous solution. Although this reaction results in only two gas products, heterogeneous catalysts could be advantageous for recycling, especially for dilute formic acid solutions, or for mobile, portable applications. Several approaches have been used to immobilize/solidify the homogeneous ruthenium–TPPTS catalyst based on ion exchange, coordination and physical absorption. The activity of the various heterogeneous catalysts for the decomposition of formic acid has been determined. These heterogenized catalysts offer the advantage of easy catalyst separation/recycling in dilute formic acid, or for mobile, portable applications.     

The effect of extended conjugation on electrocatalytic CO2 reduction by molecular catalysts and macromolecular structures

Homogenous molecular catalysts have shown significant promise for the selective reduction of CO₂ to single products. However, their practical application in emerging CO₂ reduction technologies is hindered by their limited solubility and stability in aqueous solutions, their diffusion-dependent kinetics, and their poor recyclability. Incorporating discrete molecular catalysts into macromolecular architectures such as covalent organic frameworks is one solution to these limitations that allows for the synthesis of heterogeneous materials with increased activity and stability but that still maintain the selectivity and active-site tunability of discrete molecular catalysts. Forming such macromolecular materials necessarily extends the ligand π-conjugated network, which can have important effects on the electrocatalytic activity. In this review, we discuss recent studies on the effect of extended π-conjugation on the catalytic activity of molecular catalyst and extended macromolecular architectures, with an emphasis on how activity is influenced by charge delocalization, electrostatic effects, and electronic coupling between active sites.     

Highly Stable Copper(I)–Thiacalix[4]arene-Based Frameworks for Highly Efficient Catalysis of Click Reactions in Water

Environmentally friendly metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) have gained considerable attention for their potential use as heterogeneous catalysts. Herein, two Cu^I-based MOFs, namely, [Cu₄Cl₄L] ⋅ CH₃OH ⋅ 1.5 H₂O ( 1-Cl ) and [Cu₄Br₄L] ⋅ DMF ⋅ 0.5 H₂O ( 1-Br ), were assembled with new functionalized thiacalix[4]arenes (L) and halogen anions X⁻ (X=Cl and Br) under solvothermal conditions. Remarkably, catalysts 1-Cl and 1-Br exhibit great stability in aqueous solutions over a wide pH range. Significantly, MOFs 1-Cl and 1-Br , as recycled heterogeneous catalysts, are capable of highly efficient catalysis for click reactions in water. The MOF structures, especially the exposed active Cu^I sites and 1D channels, play a key role in the improved catalytic activities. In particular, their catalytic activities in water are greatly superior to those in organic solvents or even in mixed solvents. This work proposes an attractive route for the design and self-assembly of environmentally friendly MOFs with high catalytic activity and reusability in water.     

Palladium catalysts deposited on silicon nitride in the deep oxidation of methane

The physicochemical and catalytic properties of palladium catalysts were studied in the deep oxidation of methane. The catalysts were deposited on silicon nitride from aqueous (Pd/Si₃N₄-a) and toluene (Pd/Si₃N₄-t) solutions of palladium acetate. The use of aqueous and organic solutions of palladium acetate, all other preparation conditions being equal, resulted in the formation of palladium systems with different catalytic properties. The sample from Pd/Si₃N₄-t was characterized by high activity and stability. The systems studied had different structures and adsorption properties of palladium nanoparticles, which influenced the form of reagent adsorption, catalytic properties, and mechanism of surface reactions. The suggestion was made that the solvent played a key role in the formation of the active surface of Pd-containing catalytic systems.     

Structure and catalytic activity of metal complexes on carriers 3. Rhodium complexes on modified polymers and their catalytic properties in the reduction of nitrobenzene by chemically bound hydrogen

Heterogenized catalysts based on rhodium complexes attached to polymers modified by the groups 3(5)-methylpyrazole, imidazole and benzimidazole have been synthesized. The process of their formation has been investigated by IR, UV, and EPR spectroscopy. Results have been obtained for the catalytic activity of the complexes in the hydrogenation of nitrobenzene by hydrogen transfer from propan-2-ol and NaBH₄.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Seriya Khimicheskaya, pp. 268–273, February, 1990.     

Synthesis of Supported Bimetal Catalysts using Galvanic Deposition Method

Supported bimetallic catalysts have been studied because of their enhanced catalytic properties due to metal‐metal interactions compared with monometallic catalysts. We focused on galvanic deposition (GD) as a bimetallization method, which achieves well‐defined metal‐metal interfaces by exchanging heterogeneous metals with different ionisation tendencies. We have developed Ni@Ag/SiO₂ catalysts for CO oxidation, Co@Ru/Al₂O₃ catalysts for automotive three‐way reactions and Pd−Co/Al₂O₃ catalysts for methane combustion by using the GD method. In all cases, the catalysts prepared by the GD method showed higher catalytic activity than the corresponding monometallic and bimetallic catalysts prepared by the conventional co‐impregnation method. The GD method provides contact between noble and base metals to improve the electronic state, surface structure and reducibility of noble metals.     

Catalysis of secondary alcohol blocked isocyanate-hydroxyl terminated polybutadiene cure reaction

1,3-dichloro-2-propanol-blocked isocyanates based on diisocyanates such as 4,4′-methylene bis(phenyl isocyanate), and 1,6-diisocyanato hexane were prepared. Catalysis of cure reaction between blocked diisocyanates and hydroxy 1-terminated polybutadiene was investigated. Several tertiary amine and organotin catalysts were used. The catalytic activity of amine and organotin compounds was determined from the cure-time results. It was found that the activity of the catalyst depends upon the steric constrain around the catalytic centre. The organotin compounds showed better catalytic activity than the amine catalysts. The synergistic effect of amine and organotin mixed catalysts on the cure reaction was also investigated.     

含铁的柱撑膨润土光催化降解甲基橙

将两种含铁柱撑膨润土(Fe-Al-Bent和Fe-Bent)用作复相光催化剂, 表征结果证实它们具有很高的比表面积, 铁以高催化活性的α-Fe₂O₃存在于复相催化剂中. 以甲基橙为目标降解物, 考察了不同类型的催化剂、催化剂用量以及H₂O₂浓度对其降解的影响, 并与相应的均相Fenton反应进行了比较. 结果表明: 两种复相光催化剂的催化脱色性能和COD_Cr去除率都很高, 明显优于相应的均相Fenton反应, 且复合铁铝柱撑膨润土(Fe-Al-Bent)比单一的铁柱撑膨润土(Fe-Bent)催化性能更好, 此外它们还具有分离简单、重复使用性好等特点.     

Influence of molecular organization of an azido alcohol solution on the urethane formation kinetics

The quantitative data on the influence of molecular organization of CH₂Cl₂ solutions of diazidopropanol and its non-azide analog (isopropanol) and the concentrations of the alcohols and catalyst (dibutyltin dilaurinate) on the kinetics of urethane formation via the reaction with 1,6-hexamethylene diisocyanate were obtained. The series of reactivity were composed for various associates of hydroxyl groups of these alcohols in solutions in the catalytic and non-catalytic reactions.     

Activities of octoate salts as novel catalysts for the transesterification of flexible polyurethane foams with diethylene glycol

Polyurethane foams are disposed of not only at the end of their use but also as scrap during slabstock manufacturing, leading to an environmental and economic problem. Flexible polyurethane foams can be advantageously treated by two-phase glycolysis in order to recover their constituent polyols with an improved quality compared to the single phase processes. The glycolysis comprises a transesterification, which has been traditionally catalyzed by alkanolamines, titanium compounds and acetates. In this work, the performance evaluation of new catalysts based on alkaline, alkaline-earth and transition metal octoate salts has been carried out. The carboxylates have showed different catalytic activities according to their basicity and coordination ability. A reaction mechanism for the polyurethane glycolysis in the presence of the carboxylate catalysts studied has also been proposed. The mechanism involves several steps, including the formation of a metal alkoxylate, coordination-insertion of the alkoxide into the urethane group and transfer from recovered polyol to glycol. Among the octoates studied, lithium and stannous octoates showed a remarkable catalytic activity. They yielded the greatest quality for the recovered polyol as well as the highest decomposition rates.     

Template-free sol–gel synthesis of high surface area mesoporous silica based catalysts for esterification of di-carboxylic acids

High surface area mesoporous silica based catalysts have been prepared by a simple hydrolysis/sol–gel process without using any organic template and hydrothermal treatment. A controlled hydrolysis of ethyl silicate-40, an industrial bulk chemical, as a silica precursor, resulted in the formation of very high surface area (719 m²/g) mesoporous (pore size 67 Å and pore volume 1.19 cc/g) silica. The formation of mesoporous silica has been correlated with the polymeric nature of the ethyl silicate-40 silica precursor which on hydrolysis and further condensation forms long chain silica species which hinders the formation of a close condensed structure thus creating larger pores resulting in the formation of high surface mesoporous silica. Ethyl silicate-40 was used further for preparing a solid acid catalyst by supporting molybdenum oxide nanoparticles on mesoporous silica by a simple hydrolysis sol–gel synthesis procedure. The catalysts showed very high acidity as determined by NH₃-TPD with the presence of Lewis as well as Brønsted acidity. These catalysts showed very high catalytic activity for esterification; a typical acid catalyzed organic transformation of various mono- and di-carboxylic acids with a range of alcohols. The in situ formed silicomolybdic acid heteropoly-anion species during the catalytic reactions were found to be catalytically active species for these reactions. Ethyl silicate-40, an industrial bulk silica precursor, has shown a good potential for its use as a silica precursor for the preparation of mesoporous silica based heterogeneous catalysts on a larger scale at a lower cost.     

Application of supported perovskite-type catalysts for vehicular emission control

Catalytic control of auto-exhaust emissions is one of the most successful applications of heterogeneous catalysis, both in commercial and environmental point of views. Although noble metal-based catalysts have dominated this area, efforts were always put in towards development of low cost non-noble metal-based catalysts. With the recent need of closed-coupled catalytic converter, thermal stability requirements have also become more severe, leading to the search for stable catalytic materials. Mixed oxides, including those perovskite type compounds with ABO₃ structure have been extensively studied, mainly for their catalytic and electrical properties. Low surface area of these catalysts has so far been the most important limitation for their catalytic applications involving high space velocities, e.g. auto-exhaust catalysis. Various synthesis routes have been earlier attempted to improve their surface area, yet this was much inferior than the noble metal catalysts, dispersed on high surface area alumina. The in situ synthesis of these oxides on alumina is often associated with the formation of undesired phases, due to the reactive nature of perovskite precursors. However, alumina washcoat, commonly used for improving the surface area of ceramic and metallic catalyst supports, can be modified for perovskite applications. In situ synthesis of stabilized perovskites on modified alumina-washcoated supports offer high surface area and excellent catalyst adhesion. Although, it is difficult to ascertain the presence of pure perovskite type materials on support, such improved synthesis has resulted in remarkable improvement in their catalytic activity for their applications in auto-exhaust catalytic converters. This review presents our work on synthesis of various improved perovskite-type mixed oxides supported on modified alumina-washcoated cordierite honeycomb, their characterization, and detailed catalytic evaluations for possible application in automobile pollution control.     

Sophisticated Design of Covalent Organic Frameworks with Controllable Bimetallic Docking for a Cascade Reaction

Precise control of the number and position of the catalytic metal ions in heterogeneous catalysts remains a big challenge. Here we synthesized a series of two‐dimensional (2D) covalent organic frameworks (COFs) containing two different types of nitrogen ligands, namely imine and bipyridine, with controllable contents. For the first time, the selective coordination of the two nitrogen ligands of the 2D COFs to two different metal complexes, chloro(1,5‐cyclooctadiene)rhodium(I) (Rh(COD)Cl) and palladium(II) acetate (Pd(OAc)₂), has been realized using a programmed synthetic procedure. The bimetallically docked COFs showed excellent catalytic activity in a one‐pot addition–oxidation cascade reaction. The high surface area, controllable metal‐loading content, and predesigned active sites make them ideal candidates for their use as heterogeneous catalysts in a wide range of chemical reactions.     

Second Sphere Effects Promote Formic Acid Dehydrogenation by a Single-Atom Gold Catalyst Supported on Amino-Substituted Graphdiyne

Regulating the second sphere of homogeneous molecular catalysts is a common and effective method to boost their catalytic activities, while the second sphere effects have rarely been investigated for heterogeneous single-atom catalysts primarily due to the synthetic challenge for installing functional groups in their second spheres. Benefiting from the well-defined and readily tailorable structure of graphdiyne (GDY), an Au single-atom catalyst on amino-substituted GDY is constructed, where the amino group is located in the second sphere of the Au center. The Au atoms on amino-decorated GDY displayed superior activity for formic acid dehydrogenation compared with those on unfunctionalized GDY. The experimental studies, particularly the proton inventory studies, and theoretical calculations revealed that the amino groups adjacent to an Au atom could serve as proton relays and thus facilitate the protonation of an intermediate Au−H to generate H₂. Our study paves the way to precisely constructing the functional second sphere on single-atom catalysts.     

Heterogeneous oligomerization catalysts: properties and efficiency

A number of heterogeneous acid type catalysts of silica-alumina nature, which are proposed to be used for petrochemistry by-product oligomerization, have been investigated. Particularly, such key indicators as active site concentration and strength have been determined. These parameters have been determined by the method based on potentiometric titration that is relatively seldom used in heterogeneous catalysis. The number of active site types present in investigated catalysts, as well as concentrations of each type of site, has been determined by mathematical processing of potentiometric titration data. The sequence of mathematical processing of titration data is described. The relationship between the properties of the investigated catalysts and their effectiveness in heterogeneous catalytic cooligomerization of the C₉ fraction of liquid products of diesel fuel pyrolysis has been analyzed. The relationships between yields achieved in the presence of various catalysts and the properties of these catalysts have been defined. Namely, it was determined that the product yield is almost proportional to the active site??s concentration of the catalysts (activated clay materials). The relationship between the strength of active sites and average molecular weight of the cooligomers has been found. The causes of obtained regularities have been analyzed and explained.      

Catalytic cracking of C<Subscript>5</Subscript> raffinate to light olefins over NaOH-treated ZSM-5

A series of ZSM-5 catalysts (ZSM-5 (X)) treated with different NaOH concentration (X = 0, 0.05, 0.1, and 0.2 M) were prepared for use in the production of light olefins (ethylene and propylene) through catalytic cracking of C₅ raffinate. The effect of NaOH concentration on their physicochemical properties and catalytic activity was investigated. It was found that textural and physicochemical properties of ZSM-5 (X) catalysts were strongly influenced by the NaOH concentration. Mesopore volume of ZSM-5 (X) catalysts increased with increasing NaOH concentration, while acidity of the catalysts decreased with increasing NaOH concentration. Conversion of C₅ raffinate and yield for light olefins (ethylene and propylene) showed the volcano-shaped curves with respect to NaOH concentration (X). This implies that NaOH treatment of ZSM-5 was an efficient method to produce light olefins through catalytic cracking C₅ raffinate, and that optimal NaOH concentration was required for maximum production of light olefins. Among the catalysts tested, ZSM-5 (0.05) catalyst showed the best catalytic performance due to its favorable porosity and acidity.     

Ligand effects in palladium‐catalyzed Suzuki and Heck coupling reactions

A range of sterically hindered diimine ligands and their palladium (II) complexes were synthesized. These compounds were fully characterized by elemental analysis, ¹H and ¹³C‐NMR spectroscopy. The use of the palladium complexes as catalysts for Suzuki and Heck coupling has been studied in an attempt to demonstrate the effect of side groups on catalytic activity. It was clearly seen that the location of side ? CH₃ groups which bound to benzene ring had little effect on catalytic activity. Interestingly when we changed these ? CH₃ groups with ? Cl groups the activity of the complexes increased. On the other hand, side groups which bound to imine nitrogen also had a large effect on catalytic activity. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.