Amidation of Aldehydes with Amines under Mild Conditions Using Metal-Organic Framework Derived NiO@Ni Mott-Schottky Catalyst

Here we report a facile method for the synthesis of nickel oxide-nickel (NiO@Ni) Mott-Schottky catalyst employing metal-organic framework (MOF) as the precursor. A direct amidation protocol of aldehydes with amines has been optimized under mild conditions using NiO@Ni Mott-Schottky catalyst and it shows far better catalytic activity than the NiO−Ni nanoparticles prepared from simple Ni²⁺ salt under similar reaction conditions. The heterogeneous catalyst is robust, recyclable and efficient to provide comparable yield to costly ligand-based homogeneous Ni catalysts. The scope of the reaction protocol has been explored with variably substituted substrates. The reaction initiates by homolytic cleavage of peroxide and proceeds through radical mechanism.