An Integrated Carbon Nitride-Nickel Photocatalyst for the Amination of Aryl Halides Using Sodium Azide

The synthesis of primary anilines via sustainable methods remains a challenge in organic synthesis. We report a photocatalytic protocol for the selective synthesis of primary anilines via cross-coupling of a wide range of aryl/heteroaryl halides with sodium azide using a photocatalyst powder consisting of nickel(II) deposited on mesoporous carbon nitride (Ni-mpg-CN_x ). This heterogeneous photocatalyst contains a high surface area with a visible light-absorbing and adaptive "built-in" solid-state ligand for the integrated catalytic Ni site. The method displays a high functional group tolerance, requires mild reaction conditions, and benefits from easy recovery and reuse of the photocatalyst powder. Thereby, it overcomes the need of complex ligand scaffolds required in homogeneous catalysis, precious metals and elevated temperatures/pressures in existing protocols of primary anilines synthesis. The reported heterogeneous Ni-mpg-CN_x holds potential for applications in the academic and industrial synthesis of anilines and exploration of other photocatalytic transformations.