Superior performance of metal-organic frameworks over zeolites as solid acid catalysts in the Prins reaction: green synthesis of nopol.

The catalytic performance of a set of metal-organic frameworks [CuBTC, FeBTC, MIL-100(Fe), MIL-100(Cr), ZIF-8, MIL-53(Al)] was investigated in the Prins condensation of β-pinene with formaldehyde and compared with the catalytic behavior of conventional aluminosilicate zeolites BEA and FAU and titanosilicate zeolite MFI (TS-1). The activity of the investigated metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) increased with the increasing concentration of accessible Lewis acid sites in the order ZIF-8