Metal-Free Activation of Molecular Oxygen by 9-Fluorenone-Based Porous Organic Polymers for Selective Aerobic Oxidation

Oxygen activation is a critical step in heterogeneous oxidative processes, particularly in catalytic, electrolytic, and pharmaceutical applications. Among the various catalysts available for photocatalytic O2 activation, homogeneous aryl ketones are at the forefront. To avoid the degradation and deactivation of aryl ketones, 9-fluorenone-based porous organic polymers were designed and regulated by doping them with co-monomers. The obtained heterogeneous photocatalyst showed good performance in O2 activation, and its performance was better than that of homogeneous 9-fluorenone. The obtained heterogeneous photocatalyst showed good reusability. We believe that the presented method and findings represent an important step toward designing catalysts tailored for specific tasks. Based on the molecule of 9-fluorenone, by using a cross-linking agent, a series of porous organic polymers (POPs) were designed and synthesized through Friedel-Crafts alkylation. As heterogeneous catalysts, these polymers have good stability, can realize the activation of oxygen under mild and green conditions, and have better performance than 9-fluorenone in the photocatalytic aerobic oxidation of aromatic alcohols.image