Boosting the Catalytic Performance of Metal-Organic Frameworks for Steroid Transformations by Confinement within a Mesoporous Scaffold

Francisco G Cirujano; Ignacio Luz; Mustapha Soukri; Cedric Van Goethem; Ivo F J Vankelecom; Marty Lail; Dirk E De Vos

doi:10.1002/anie.201706721

Boosting the Catalytic Performance of Metal-Organic Frameworks for Steroid Transformations by Confinement within a Mesoporous Scaffold

Angew Chem Int Ed Engl. 2017 Oct 16;56(43):13302-13306. doi: 10.1002/anie.201706721. Epub 2017 Sep 25.

Authors

Francisco G Cirujano¹, Ignacio Luz², Mustapha Soukri², Cedric Van Goethem¹, Ivo F J Vankelecom¹, Marty Lail², Dirk E De Vos¹

Affiliations

¹ Centre for Surface Chemistry and Catalysis, KU Leuven Celestijnenlaan 200F, 3001, Leuven, Belgium.
² RTI International, Research Triangle Park, NC, 27709-2194, USA.

PMID: 28861939
DOI: 10.1002/anie.201706721

Abstract

Solid-state crystallization achieves selective confinement of metal-organic framework (MOF) nanocrystals within mesoporous materials, thereby rendering active sites more accessible compared to the bulk-MOF and enhancing the chemical and mechanical stability of MOF nanocrystals. (Zr)UiO-66(NH₂ )/SiO₂ hybrid materials were tested as efficient and reusable heterogeneous catalysts for the synthesis of steroid derivatives, outperforming the bulk (Zr)UiO-66(NH₂ ) MOF. A clear correlation between the catalytic activity of the dispersed Zr sites present in the confined MOF, and the loading of the mesoporous SiO₂ , is demonstrated for steroid transformations.

Keywords: MOF composites; active-site confinement; mesoporous silica; nanoMOFs; steroid chemistry.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't