A novel yttrium-based metal-organic framework for the efficient solvent-free catalytic synthesis of cyanohydrin silyl ethers.

A new porous metal-organic framework (MOF) with the chemical formula [YL(OH)(DMF)]·5HO (1) (where L = 3-amino-4-hydroxybenzoate) has been prepared by a solvothermal procedure. The structural characterization reveals that this material consists of a robust three-dimensional metal-organic framework (MOF) grown with clusters formed by Y(iii) and hydroxide anions joined to one another by the ligand, giving rise to an open structure with interconnected microchannels with variable dimensions. This assembled set has shown to possess a fascinating catalytic activity for the cyanosilylation of a broad range of aldehydes and ketones with exceptional recyclability, a solvent-free medium, and one order of magnitude lower catalyst loading compared to all related lanthanide-based MOFs described so far in the literature.