Immobilizing Amine Species in a Cr-MOF for Enhanced Selectivity in CO2 Cycloaddition Reactions

After graftingpolyalkylaminespeciesonto the ligandwithin a Cr3+-MOF, the materials were tested for their efficacy incatalyzing cycloaddition reactions between CO2 and 1,2-epoxybutane (EB). While the amine species significantly increased the MOF’s cyclic carbonates electivity, Cr3+promotes the formation of unwanted polymeric side-products that become trapped in the MOF pores, reducing catalyst cyclability.