Porous-Hybrid Polymers as Platforms for Heterogeneous Photochemical Catalysis

A number of permanently porous polymers containing Ru(bpy)n photosensitizer or a cobaloxime complex, as a proton-reduction catalyst, were constructed via one-pot Sonogashira-Hagihara (SH) cross-coupling reactions. This process required minimal workup to access porous platforms with control over the apparent surface area, pore volume, and chemical functionality from suitable molecular building blocks (MBBs) containing the Ru or Co complexes, as rigid and multi-topic nodes. The cobaloxime molecular building block, generated through in situ metalation, afforded a microporous solid that demonstrated noticeable catalytic activity towards hydrogen-evolution reaction (HER) with remarkable recyclability. We further demonstrated, in two cases, the ability to affect the excited state lifetime of the covalently-immobilized Ru(bpy)3 complex attained through deliberate utilization of the organic linkers of variable dimensions. Overall, this approach facilitates construction of tunable porous solids, with hybrid composition and pronounced chemical and physical stability, based on the well-known Ru(bpy)nor the cobaloxime complexes.