Cu/N-doped carbon spheres derived from soybean flour as an active green nanocomposite for the synthesis of 1,4-disubstituted 1H-1,2,3-triazole derivatives.

Cu immobilized onto N-doped carbon spheres (Cu/N-doped CS) derived from soybean flour was synthesized via the hydrothermal method and certified as a green high-efficiency catalyst for the regioselective synthesis of 1,4-disubstituted 1H-1,2,3-triazoles. The obtained N-doped carbon spheres from a combination of glucose and soy flour have a larger size and suitable affinity for load copper species. The morphology and structure of the as-prepared catalyst have been confirmed based on FT-IR, XRD, FE-SEM, EDX, BET, and ICP-OES characterizations. The catalytic performance of the Cu/N-doped carbon spheroids was investigated experimentally. It was found that the Cu/N-doped CS nanocomposite has a high efficiency and recyclability for 5 cycles without any appreciable loss in its catalytic activity in the synthesis of 1,4-disubstituted 1H-1,2,3-triazoles via the three-component condensation reaction of various epoxide/alkyl or aryl halides, sodium azide, and phenylacetylene in a water medium. Furthermore, significant advantages such as stability, ease of preparation, low cost of the carbon resource, high regioselectivity, and good product yield have been achieved in the heterogeneous catalyst system attractive for large-scale in many industrial products.