A Cu-Ni bimetallic magnetic nanocatalyst: a novel, efficient, magnetically and recyclable catalyst for Sonogashira reaction

Abstract

The Sonogashira C C cross-coupling reaction is one of the most applicable types of C C cross-couplings, which involves the coupling of vinyl or aryl halides or triflates with terminal alkynes (Csp2 Csp) [1]; since its vital application for the construction of complex biological and pharmaceutical molecules from simple precursors, the Sonogashira reaction has had significant importance in the field of synthetic organic chemistry [2]. Various methodologies have been reported in the literature for the Sonogashira cross-coupling reactions catalyzed by nickel and copper, due to the lower cost and easy availability of these metals [3]. In recent decades, bimetallic catalysts as an important class of active catalysts have attracted much of attention in academic and industrial applications. The bimetallic catalyst procedure is different from single metal catalysts because both metals use special cycles that refer to transmetalation [4]. Stabilized catalysts on the surface of Fe3O4 NPs are noteworthy within the industrial applications because of providing the opportunity of precious metals recovery while capability for acceptable elimination of metal contamination in chemical and pharmaceutical products [5]. MNPs have high surface area that causes them to stick together and eventually agglomerate; therefore, they are usually covered with compounds such as silica. This modification allows for suitable functionalization of the NPs with various compounds to achieve a specific goal. In our study, we synthesized a magnetically recyclable Copper/nikel bimetallic nanocatalyst (Fe3O4@SiO2/Cu-Ni) with high performance for the Sonogashira reaction.