A novel theophylline-functionalized magnetic palladium complex for green suzuki-miyaura cross-coupling reaction

In this work, a novel highly efficient theophylline-based N-heterocyclic carbene-Pd(II) metal complex is synthesized and immobilized on the nano-magnetite through a multistep synthetic process. The complex is thoroughly characterized using various analytical techniques, such as FT-IR, XRD, HR-TEM, SEM, EDX, TGA, VSM, and XPS. Its catalytic potency was evaluated for the Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling reaction between aryl halides and aryl boronic acids. The catalyst's hydrophilic surface, due to the presence of sulphonate groups, significantly enhances its activity in water, providing an eco-friendly reaction medium. The reaction proceeds at ambient temperature in aqueous media, resulting high yield and shorter reaction time. The complex is easily isolated using an external magnet and exhibits excellent reusability for up to a total of six cycles without an admirable change in yield. Furthermore, the catalytic system shows high turnover numbers (TON) and turnover frequencies (TOF), ensuring its sustainability.