Cobalt modified N-doped carbon nanotubes for catalytic C=C bond formation via dehydrogenative coupling of benzyl alcohols and DMSO

摘要

The development of heterogeneous, cost-effective and environmentally benign catalysts to construct C=C bonds is highly desirable. We report here Co@N-doped carbon nanotubes (Co@NCNT) as a catalyst for a novel synthesis of styryl sulfides via dehydrogenative coupling of benzyl alcohols and DMSO under anaerobic conditions. This reaction maintains high atom efficiency as the C=C bond is formed without the cracking of the C-S bond. We proposed that Co modified N-doped carbon sites are the active sites, different from traditionally believed metal centers for dehydrogenative C-C coupling. Moreover, the Co@NCNT catalyst could be easily separated and recycled for at least six runs. This work opens up a new application of metal-N-C catalysts in C=C bond-forming reactions in synthetic chemistry.