Synthesis and characterization of mesoporous poly(N-vinyl-2-pyrrolidone) containing palladium nanoparticles as a novel heterogeneous organocatalyst for Heck reaction

Mesoporous poly(N-vinyl-2-pyrrolidone) (MPVP) was prepared through a nanocasting technique based on mesoporous silica KIT-6 as sacrificial templates, and served as an efficient scaffold for supporting Pd nanoparticles. The physical and chemical properties of Pd-MPVP were characterized using FT-IR, XRD, BET, DRS UV–Vis, SEM, TEM and TGA techniques. The application of this novel purely organic heterogeneous catalyst, which combine the advantage of organic polymers and mesoporous materials, was investigated for CC bond formation through the Heck coupling reaction of aryl iodides, bromides and chlorides with styrene. It was observed that the activity of this catalyst decreased just 5% after nine regeneration processes were performed. This unique result opens new perspectives for application of purely organic mesoporous polymers as structurally defined hydrophobic catalyst in catalytic reactions.