Core-Double-Shell Fe₃O₄@Carbon@Poly(In^III-carboxylate) Microspheres: Cycloaddition of CO₂ and Epoxides on Coordination Polymer Shells Constituted by Imidazolium-Derived Al^III–Salen Bifunctional Catalysts

A hydrid microsphere Fe3O4@carbon@poly(In(III)-carboxylate) consisting of a cluster of Fe3O4 nanoparticles as the core, a carbon layer as the inner shell and a porous In(III)-carboxylate coordination polymer as the outer shell was prepared and applied as a recyclable catalyst for the cycloaddition reaction of CO2 and epoxides. Construction of this hybrid microsphere was achieved in the two steps, including (1) the one-pot solvothermal synthesis of Fe3O4@C particles with the abundant carboxylic groups on the carbon surface and (2) the subsequent growth of the outer shell polymers based on the precipitation coordination polymerization. Imidazolium-substituted Salen ligands were synthesized and chelated with the In(III) ions using the terminal carboxylic groups. The coordination polymer shell was formed on the Fe3O4@C particles, and the structures including shell thickness, surface area and porosity could be varied by tuning the feeding ratios of the In(III) ions and the ligands. The optimal structure of the coordination polymers showed a shell thickness of ca. 45 nm with ∼5 nm of mesopore, 174.7 m(2)/g of surface area and 0.2175 cm(3)/g of pore volume. In light of gas uptake capability, catalytic activity and magnetic susceptibility, cycloaddition of CO2 with a series of epoxides were studied by using Al-complexed Fe3O4@C@In(III)-[IL-Salen] microspheres. The results validated that the self-supporting catalytic layer with high surface area was of remarkable advantages, which were attributed from great increment of effective active sites and combination of nucleophilic/electrophilic synergistic property and CO2 uptake capability. Therefore, these hybrid microspheres provided excellent catalytic activity, prominent selectivity to cyclic carbonates and outstanding recyclability with the assistance of an applied magnetic field.