In this study, chitosan directly cross-linked by PdII cation membranes (Pd-cr-CSM) with good mechanical strength and thermal stabilities have been prepared. Although the prepared Pd-cr-CSM has neither open porous structure nor high specific surface areas, it has similar good catalytic activity and much higher stability as compared with typical prepared chitosan-stabilized palladium heterogeneous catalysts for Heck reactions. It is highly active for the Heck reactions of aryl iodides and bromides with a strong electron-withdrawing group at a palladium catalyst loading of 0.15 mol %. It can be recycled 12 times in dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) solution or 7 times in aqueous solution. The high activity and extreme stability of the Pd-cr-CSM catalyst are mainly attributed to the well-entrapped palladium nanoparticles inside the chitosan matrix, which might catalyze the coupling reactions in the free volume holes (open spaces) of the swollen cross-linked chitosan gel networks.

Metal nanoparticles, once supported by a suitable scaffolding material, can be used as highly efficient heterogeneous catalysts for numerous organic reactions. The challenge, though, is to mitigate the continuous loss of metals from the supporting materials as reactions proceed, so that the catalysts can be recycled multiple times. Herein, we combine the excellent chelating property of chitosan (CS) and remarkable stability of montmorillonite (MMT) into a composite material to support metal catalysts such as palladium (Pd). The in situ reduction of Pd2+ into Pd0 in the interstices of MMT/CS composites effectively encages the Pd0 nanoparticles in the porous matrices, while still allowing for reactant and product molecules of relatively small sizes to diffuse in and out the matrices. The prepared Pd0@MMT/CS catalysts are highly active for the Heck reactions of aromatic halides and alkenes, and can be recycled 30 times without significant loss of activities. Positron annihilation lifetime analysis and other structural characterization methods are implemented to elucidate the unique compartmentalization of metal catalysts in the composite matrices. As both CS and MMT are economical and abundant materials in nature, this approach may facilitate a versatile platform for developing highly recyclable, heterogeneous catalysts containing metal nanoparticles.Keywords: chitosan; heterogeneous catalysis; montmorillonite; palladium; positron annihilation;

•Novel uniform mesoporous Pd@N-C heterogeneous catalyst is prepared.•Thermal carbonization and silica template removing techniques are used.•The catalyst exhibits excellent activity and super stability in Heck reactions.•CS is used as beginning material and the preparation method is not complicated.In this study, a heterogeneous catalyst including palladium nanoparticles supported on nitrogen-doped mesoporous carbon (Pd@N-C) is synthesized from palladium salts as palladium precursor, colloidal silica as template, and chitosan as carbon source. N2 sorption isotherm results show that the prepared Pd@N-C had a high BET surface area (640 m2 g−1) with large porosity. The prepared Pd@N-C is high nitrogen-rich as characterized with element analysis. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM), and Raman spectroscopy characterization of the catalyst shows that the palladium species with different chemical states are well dispersed on the nitrogen-containing mesoporous carbon. The Pd@N-C is high active and shows excellent stability as applied in Heck coupling reactions. This work supplies a successful method to prepare Pd heterogeneous catalysts with high performance from bulk biopolymer/Pd to high porous nitrogen-doped carbon supported palladium catalytic materials.