Cyclopalladated ferrocenylimine functionalized polymer brushes film and its mechanism investigation of heterogeneous catalysis

•Cyclopalladated ferrocenylimine functionalized polymer brushes film was prepared.•It exhibited high activity, good reusability and stability in Suzuki reaction.•Pd0 on the surface of films acted as active species to catalyze coupling reaction.•The reaction proceeded via a mechanism of surface-catalyzed process.

A highly active, reusable and stable cyclopalladated ferrocenylimine functionalized polymer brushes film (Pd/PBs) had been developed. The Pd/PBs was tested in Suzuki reaction and displayed high activity for the preparation of various biaryls at elevated temperatures in neat water without ligands. Good reusability and stability were presented as that catalytic film could be reused at least eight times with little Pd leaching into the crude product. The reasonable and feasible reaction mechanism of the heterogeneous Suzuki reaction was deeply explored, in which a catalytic cycle of PdII to Pd0 and Pd0 to PdII on the surface was clearly detected and illustrated. In this approach, the coupling reaction catalyzed by active Pd species on the surface of nano-films had proceeded via a mechanism of surface-catalyzed process.

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