Synthesis, characterization, and catalytic activity of supported molybdenum Schiff base complex as a magnetically recoverable nanocatalyst in epoxidation reaction

A heterogeneous nanocatalyst was prepared via covalent anchoring of dioxomolybdenum(VI) Schiff base complex on core-shell structured Fe3O4@SiO2. The properties and the nature of the surface-fixed complex have been identified by a series of characterization techniques such as SEM, EDX, XRD, TGA, FT-IR, and VSM. The synthesized hybrid material was an efficient nanocatalyst for selective oxidation of olefins to corresponding epoxides with t-BuOOH in high yields and selectivity. The catalyst could be conveniently recovered by applying an external magnetic field and reused several times without significant loss of efficiency. [GRAPHICS] .