Hydrogen bonding controlled catalysis of a porous organic framework containing benzimidazole moieties

Abstract

A microporous organic framework (JUC-Z12) was synthesized quantitatively from tetra(4-formylphenyl)methane and 3,3′-diaminobenzidine. JUC-Z12 shows high thermal stability (>400 °C), a large surface area (SBET = 750 m2 g-1), a well-defined uniform micropore distribution (1.09 nm) and high Qst for H2 (-8.1 kJ mol-1), CO2 (-29.5 kJ mol-1), and CH 4 (-22.2 kJ mol-1). It also exhibits selective catalytic activities in the Knoevenagel reaction, which is supposed to be controlled by hydrogen bonding between substrates and JUC-Z12. The JUC-Z12 catalyst can be easily isolated from the reaction mixture by simple filtration and reused with high activity. This journal is © the Partner Organisations 2014.