Molybdenum disulfide-catalyzed direct α-hydroxymethylation of amides employing methanol as a sustainable C1 source under photoirradiation

• Published in: Journal of catalysis 2023-11, Vol.427, p.115100, Article 115100
• Main Authors: Wang, Ya-Meng, Wang, Jun-Bo, Huang, Jing, Cui, Zhen-Shui, Zhang, Mo, Zhang, Zhan-Hui
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: air; Amides; catalytic activity; ferrimagnetic materials; Heterogeneous photocatalyst; Hydroxymethylation; light; magnetic fields; Magnetic material; Methanol; molybdenum; Molybdenum disulfide; oxidants; photocatalysts; photoirradiation; quantum dots
• ISSN: 0021-9517; 1090-2694
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jcat.2023.115100

A magnetically separable MoS2 heterogeneous photocatalyst was designed and applied for direct α-hydromethylation of amides using methanol as C1 source and air as oxidant to give β-hydroxyamide derivatives in high yield. [Display omitted] •A new magnetically separable CuFe2O4/PDA/MoS2 photocatalyst was designed.•CuFe2O4/PDA/MoS2 photocatalyst was characterized in detail.•The CuFe2O4/PDA/MoS2 shows excellent photocatalytic performance for direct α-hydroxymethylation of amides employing methanol as a C1 source.•Photocatalyst can be easily separated and recycled with little loss of its activity. MoS2 quantum dot stabilized on magnetical copper ferrite (CuFe2O4) was prepared. The structural and textural of the designed CuFe2O4/polydopamine (PDA)/MoS2 were characterized. The heterogeneous CuFe2O4/PDA/MoS2 catalytic system-driven direct α-hydromethylation of amides using methanol as a green and renewable C1 source and air as a sole oxidant under visible light irradiation has been established for the first time. A wide range of β-hydroxyamide derivatives were obtained in high yields with excellent functional group tolerance. The photocatalyst can be recycled by an external magnetic field and reused several times without appreciably decreasing its catalytic activity.