Assembly of Uranyl-Containing Isopolyoxotungstate for Visible-Light-Driven Photocatalytic Synthesis of Quinazolinones

Abstract Introducing uranyl into isopolyoxotungstates offers significant opportunities for enriching the structures and properties of polyoxometalates, yet it remains a formidable challenge. Herein, a novel dimeric uranyl-containing isopolyoxotungstate, Na3[H2N(CH3)2]4H5[(UO2)(H2O)(H2W11O38)]2·10H2O (U2W22), was synthesized using Na2B4O7·10H2O as both a buffer and mineralizer, and DL-tartaric acid as a key auxiliary reagents. Single-crystal X-ray structure analysis revealed that U2W22 features a fascinating “S”-shaped sandwich framework, in which two UO22+ units are connected to two {W11} subunits through eight bridging oxygen atoms. Notably, U2W22 exhibits outstanding photocatalytic performance in the visible-light-driven synthesis of quinazolinones via the condensation of o-aminobenzamides and aldehydes under an oxygen atmosphere. This work provides a viable strategy for constructing uranyl-containing isopolyoxotungstates and demonstrates their promising potential in photocatalytic organic transformations.