Development of a SO3H‐Functionalized UiO‐66 Metal–Organic Framework by Postsynthetic Modification and Studies of Its Catalytic Activities

Abstract A novel metal–organic framework UiO‐66‐NH2‐derived Brønsted acid catalyst was synthesized on a gram scale by employing a postsynthetic modification strategy under mild conditions. The nanomorphology of the catalyst was designed and developed to enhance its catalytic performance. Acetalization and benzimidazole formation were evaluated to demonstrate the high reactivity and selectivity of the nanoscaled UiO‐66‐NH‐RSO3H catalyst, which were found to be comparable to the reactivity and selectivity of the strong homogeneous Brønsted acid catalyst. Furthermore, the UiO‐66‐NH‐RSO3H catalyst was recycled several times without compromising the yield and selectivity.