New Tools for Green Catalysis : Studies on a Biomimetic Hybrid Catalyst and a Novel Nanopalladium Catalyst

Abstract: The first part of this thesis describes an improved synthetic route to hybrid (hydroquinone-Schiff base)cobalt catalysts. Preparation of the 5-(2,5-hydroxyphenyl)salicylaldehyde building block was improved by altering the protective groups of the hydroquinone (HQ) starting material. Both protection and deprotection could be carried out under mild conditions, resulting in high yields. By optimizing the reaction conditions of the Suzuki cross-coupling, an efficient and inexpensive synthetic route with a good overall yield was developed.The second part describes the use of the hybrid catalyst as an electron transfer mediator (ETM) in the palladium-catalyzed aerobic carbocyclization of enallenes. By covalently linking the HQ to the cobalt Schiff-base complex the reaction proceeded at lower temperatures with a five-fold increase of the reaction rate compared to the previously reported system.The third part describes the application of the hybrid catalyst in the biomimetic aerobic oxidation of secondary alcohols. Due to the effi­ciency of the intramolecular electron transfer, the hybrid catalyst allowed for a lower catalytic loading and milder reaction conditions compared to the previous separate-component system. Benzylic alcohols as well as aliphatic alcohols were oxidized to the corresponding ketones in excellent yield and selectivity using this methodology.The fourth part describes the synthesis and characterization of highly dispersed palladium nanoparticles supported on aminopropyl-modified siliceous mesocellular foam. The Pd nanocatalyst showed excellent activity for the aerobic oxidation of a wide variety of alcohols under air atmosphere. Moreover, the catalyst can be recycled several times without any decrease in activity or leaching of the metal into solution.Finally, the fifth part describes the application of the Pd nanocatalyst in transfer hydrogenations and Suzuki coupling reactions. The catalyst was found to be highly efficient for both transformations, resulting in chemoselective reduction of various alkenes as well as coupling of a variety of aryl halides with various boronic acids in excellent yields. Performing the latter reaction under microwave irradiation significantly increased the reaction rate, compared to conventional heating. However, no significant increase in reaction rate was observed for the transfer hydrogenations, under microwave heating.