Cu Nanoparticles Decorated on Magnetic NH2-MIL-101(Fe): A Highly Active Catalyst for C–N Coupling and Reductive Degradation of Dyes

In the pursuit of advanced catalytic materials, the synergistic integration of diverse components within a single platform has emerged as a transformative strategy. This paper unveils the synthesis of Cu nanoparticles immobilized on different magnetic metal–organic frameworks [NH₂-MIL-101(Fe), MIL-101(Fe) and MIL-101(Cr)]. The main focus of the present work is to study the effect of different metal ion and ligand of the framework on the catalytic activity of Cu nanoparticles. The catalytic potential of synthesized catalysts was compared for C–N coupling and reductive degradation of organic dyes. Among the three synthesized catalysts, Cu@NH₂-MIL-101(Fe)/Fe₃O₄ demonstrated high activity attributed to the synergistic interaction between NH₂-MIL-101(Fe) and Cu as well as due to higher immobilization of catalytically active Cu nanoparticles. The catalyst offered virtues like mild reaction conditions, magnetically separable, ligand-free conditions, high product yield; and turnover number in the range of 3.68 to 5.46. Moreover, the catalyst maintains its structural integrity, chemical properties and effective magnetic response after five catalytic cycles, as demonstrated by FTIR, XRD, XPS and VSM analysis of the recycled catalyst.

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