The Combination of Charge and Energy Transfer Processes in MOFs for Efficient Photocatalytic Oxidative Coupling of Amines

Combining electron and energy transfer processes is very significant for efficient photocatalytic oxidation of organic molecules. The first synthesized MOF, Co₂(L)(2,6-NDC)₂·xguest (FJI-Y10, L = bis(N-pyridyl) tetrachloroperylene peryleneimide, 2,6-NDC = 2,6-naphthalenedicarboxylic acid, FJI = Fujian Institute), shows a 2-fold interpenetrated pcu net, in which the 2,6-NDC ligand connects typical Co₂(COO)₄ paddle wheel clusters to form square lattices pillared by new PDI-type ligand L. FJI-Y10 as a heterogeneous and recyclable photocatalyst is applied for photo-oxidation of benzylamine and its derivatives with an excellent yield of 100%, which is much higher than that (59%) of the equivalent L ligand as a homogeneous photocatalyst under the same reaction conditions. Such a high-efficiency photocatalytic activity attributes to the combination of charge and energy transfer processes in catalyst FJI-Y10 during the catalytic process.