Sol-gel synthesis, characterization and catalytic property of silicas modified with oxomolybdenum complexes

Active solid oxidation catalysts can be obtained by incorporating dioxomolybdenum(VI) species derived from MoO2Cl2(OPMePh2)2 into silica matrices via a sol-gel method, and can catalyze epoxidation. The supported catalyst has been characterized by elemental analysis, XRD, N2-physisorption, FT-IR, FT-Raman, UV-vis and solid-state MAS NMR spectroscopies, and a pathway for the reaction between MoO2Cl2(OPMePh2)2 and tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) is suggested.