Ordered mesoporous SBA‐15/PrSO3Pd and SBA‐15/PrSO3PdNP as active,reusable and selective phosphine‐free catalysts in CX activation Heck coupling process

The incorporation of sulfonate into mesoporous SBA‐15 molecular sieves as ligands for palladium ions was used. Then SBA‐15/PrSO₃Pd and SBA‐15/PrSO₃Pd_NP were prepared and applied for the Heck arylation reaction of conjugate alkenes with aryl halides, to afford corresponding cross‐coupling products under phosphine‐free aerobic conditions with good to excellent yields. These supported palladium pre‐catalysts could be separated easily from reaction products and reused several times, showing superiority over homogeneous catalysts for industrial and chemical applications. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.