Effect of the Synthesis Conditions of MIL-100(Fe) on Its Catalytic Properties and Stability under Reaction Conditions

MIL-100(Fe) is a metal–organic framework (MOF) characterized by the presence of Lewis acid and Fe(II/III) redox sites. In this work, different synthesis methods for the preparation of MIL-100(Fe) are studied. Depending on the source of fluorine, different phases can be obtained: MIL-100(Fe) and an Fe trimesate with unknown structure which we call Fe(BTC). These materials were characterized using numerous techniques and applied in the reaction of CO2 cycloaddition with epichlorohydrin, a reaction catalyzed by Lewis acid sites. It was observed that samples with more Fe(BTC) phase were more active in the reaction. However, all samples, under reaction conditions, transformed into a less active phase.