Cerium-containing MCM-41 catalyst for selective oxidative arene cross-dehydrogenative coupling reactions

Cerium (IV)-mediated intermolecular direct biaryl coupling of aromatic tertiary amines and naphthol via dual CH bond activation has been reported. The new CC bond is formed regioselectively ortho to the amino and hydroxyl substituents under oxidative conditions to give substituted bifunctional amino naphthols. We report here the use of Ce-MCM-41 catalyst for the synthesis of these unsymmetrical biaryls via oxidative cross coupling under mild conditions. The catalyst was recovered by simple filtration and reused for several cycles with consistent activity.

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► Ce-MCM-41 catalyst is stable and its activity is markedly increased with peroxide.
► The acidity of the MCM-41 is improved by the presence of cerium.
► The cross-coupling reaction was found to be both regio as well as chemo selective.
► The heterogenous catalyst was reused several times and no cerium leaching was observed.