Cationic Zn-Porphyrin Polymer Coated on CNTs as Bifunctional Catalyst for the Conversion of CO2 to Cyclic Carbonates

Immobilizing catalysts on supports is considered to be one of the promising methods for synthesizing heterogeneous catalysts. Herein, we employed a simple one-pot method to obtain the metalloporphyrin modified carbon nanotubes (ZnTImP-CP/CNTs), using 1,4-bis(bromomethyl)-benzene (BBMB) and zinc 5,10,15,20-tetrakis(4-(imidazole)phenyl)porphyrin (ZnTImP) as monomers. With the Lewis acid sites (Zn-porphyrin) and nucleophilic groups (Br−), this composite material has displayed excellent activity and stability for catalyzing the chemical fixation of CO2 to synthesize value-added cyclic carbonates. The remarkable performance of ZnTImP-CP/CNTs is not only due to the synergy of the Lewis acid and base but also to the large specific surface area.