A Porous Carbazolic Al-MOF for Efficient Aerobic Photo-Oxidation of Sulfides into Sulfoxides under Air.

A robust, microporous, and photoactive aluminum-based metal-organic framework (Al-MOF, LCU-600) has been assembled by an in situ-formed [Al 3 O(CO 2 ) 6 ] trinuclear building unit and a tritopic carbazole ligand. LCU-600 shows a high water stability and permanent porosity for N 2 and CO 2 adsorption. Notably, the incorporation of photoresponsive carbazole moieties into LCU-600 makes it a highly efficient and recyclable photocatalyst for aerobic photo-oxidation of sulfides into sulfoxides under an air atmosphere at room temperature. Mechanism investigations unveil that photogenerated holes (h + ), superoxide radical anion (O 2 •- ), and singlet oxygen ( 1 O 2 ) are critical active spices for the photo-oxidation reaction performed in an air atmosphere.