INTERPENETRATING ORGANOMETALLIC POLYMER NETWORKS IN HETEROGENEOUS CATALYSIS - MILD HYDROGENATION OF P-NITROTOLUENE

A cross-linked organometallic macroporous copolymer (PI) and an interp enetrating organometallic polymer network (IOPN) material (CI), both b ased on the organometallic monomer cis-(PdCl2(CN CH2)3OC(O)CH=CH2)2) ( 1), are catalytically active and reusable in the mild and selective hy drogenation of p-nitrotoluene to p-toluidine in methanol, under ambien t conditions. The IOPN catalyst C1 is generated by the dispersion of a copolymer of 1 inside a macroporous poly-dimethylacrylamide-methylene bisacrylamide matrix to give an expectedly microporous organometallic matrix which exhibits a catalytic productivity quite similar to that d isplayed by Pl. The productivity of both catalysts is comparable to th at exhibited by commercial Pd/C under the same conditions, with Pl and Cl far superior in terms of separability and handiness.