Abstract:

The novel catalysts of Cu supported on ZnO, MgO modified with KF were prepared by the conventional impregnation method, and applied for the first time to the Heck reactions of iodobenzene with n-butyl acrylate as a model reaction. The results indicate that little conversion of iodobenzene was observed on unmodified carrier supported catalysts; and a conversion of 100% and a selectivity of above 98% to trans-isomers were found over 10%Cu/5%KF/ZnO, 20%Cu/10%KF/ZnO. The conversion of p-nitrobromobenzene could reach 34.3% in the Heck reaction with n-butyl acrylate catalyzed by 10%Cu/5%KF/ZnO. The modified carrier supported catalyst can be reused after regeneration without significant loss in catalytic activity in four cycles, for example, the conversion of iodobenzene over 20%Cu/10%KF/ZnO was found to be 65.4% in four cycles. The XRD patterns of the catalysts show that the content of CuO on the surface of the catalysts was raised with addition of modifying agent so as to increase the activity of catalysts.

Key words: Heck reaction, Modified supported-Cu catalysts, n-Butyl acrylate, Iodobenzene, KF