Functional Porphyrinic Metal–Organic Framework as a New Class of Heterogeneous Halogen-Bond-Donor Catalyst

Biomimetic metal-organic frameworks have attracted great attention as they can be used as bio-inspired models, allowing us to gain important insights into how large biological molecules function as catalysts. In this work, we report the synthesis and utilization of such a metal-metalloporphyrin framework (MMPF) that is constructed from a custom-designed ligand as an efficient halogen bond donor catalyst for Diels–Alder reactions under ambient conditions. The implementation of fabricated halogen bonding capsule as binding pocket with high-density C−Br bonds enabled the use of halogen bonding to facilitate organic transformations in their three-dimensional cavities. Through combined experimental and computational studies, we showed that the substrate molecules diffuse through the pores of the MMPF, establishing a host-guest system via the C−Br⋅⋅⋅π interaction. The formation of halogen bonds is a plausible explanation for the observed boosted catalytic efficiency in Diels–Alder reactions. Moreover, the unique capability of MMPF highlights new opportunities in using artificial non-covalent binding pockets as highly tunable and selective catalytic materials.