Metal-decorated porous organic frameworks with cross-linked pyridyl and triazinyl as efficient platforms for CO2 activation and conversion under mild conditions

A series of metal-decorated porous organic frameworks (M@PTPOFs) with cross-linked pyridyl and triazinyl were fabricated through a two-step method. The structures of the PTPOFs and M@PTPOFs were systematically characterized. As heterogeneous catalysts with Lewis acid/basic sites, the M@PTPOFs were applied to catalyze the model cycloaddition of CO2 and epoxides. The optimal catalytic system and reaction parameters were investigated in detail. It was found that 1.0Co@PTPOF-400-15 cooperating with tetrabutylammonium iodide (TBAI) achieved the best catalytic performance, with a 96% product yield and 99% selectivity under mild conditions of 60.C and 2.0 MPa CO2 for 5.0 h. Moreover, 1.0Co@PTPOF-400-15 could be easily recycled by centrifugation and reused multiple times with nearly unchanged catalytic activity. Finally, the product yield and reaction parameters were compared with those of reported heterogeneous catalysts, and the possible synergistic catalytic mechanism of 1.0Co@PTPOF-400-15/TBAI was proposed. The multiple Lewis acid/basic active sites, robust structure and excellent catalytic performance are useful for the development of other high-efficiency heterogeneous catalysts.