A New Mesoporous Hybrid Material: Porphyrin‐Doped Aerogel as a Catalyst for the Epoxidation of Olefins

A new hybrid organic–inorganic material has been obtained by the incorporation of a manganese(III ) porphyrin into a mesoporous aerogel matrix. The new heterogeneous catalyst was active in the epoxidation of a variety of olefins and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, using iodosylbenzene as oxidizing agent. The catalyst was stable, readily recovered, and re‐used without loss of activity. The hybrid aerogel catalyst was more active than the corresponding metalloporphyrin in homogeneous solution.