Oxovanadium(IV) and dioxomolybdenum(VI) salen complexes tethered onto amino-functionalized SBA-15 for the epoxidation of cyclooctene

Oxovanadium(IV) and dioxomolybdenum(VI) salen complexes were firstly tethered onto amino-functionalized mesoporous SBA-15 materials by a stepwise procedure and were screened as catalysts for the epoxidation of cyclooctene. The mesoporous structural integrity throughout the tethering procedure, the successful tethering of the organometallic complexes, the loadings of metal ions and organic ligands as well as the catalyst surface constitution and location of active organometallic species on the SBA-15 support were determined by comprehensive characterization techniques such as XRD, N2 adsorption/desorption, FT-IR, UV–vis spectroscopy, ICP-AES, XPS and TG/DTA. Catalytic properties in the epoxidation of cyclooctene demonstrate that both tethered oxovanadium(IV) and dioxomolybdenum(VI) catalysts were more active than their respective homogeneous analogue, and the tethered oxovanadium(IV) complex showed the best activity (64.3%) with H2O2 as the oxidant and CH3CN as the solvent.

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► VO(IV) and MoO2(VI) salen complexes were firstly tethered onto SBA-15.
► Support and active species were fully characterized.
► Both tethered catalysts were more active than their respective homogeneous analogue.