Chinese Journal of Catalysis ›› 2014, Vol. 35 ›› Issue (3): 279-285.DOI: 10.1016/S1872-2067(14)60024-3

• Communications • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Cyclohexane oxidation:Small organic molecules as catalysts

Yicheng Zhang, Weili Dai, Guangjun Wu, Naijia Guan, Landong Li   

  1. Key Laboratory of Advanced Energy Materials Chemistry (Ministry of Education), College of Chemistry, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, China
  • Received:2013-11-10 Revised:2014-01-02 Online:2014-02-26 Published:2014-02-26
  • Supported by:

    This work was supported by the MOE Innovation Team (IRT13022) of China, the Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemical Science and Engineering (Tianjin) and 111 Project (B12015).

Abstract:

The catalytic activity of several small organic molecules including ketones, aldehydes, esters, alcohols and amines toward cyclohexane oxidation was investigated. The catalytic activity was found to be closely related to polarity, α-H activity, the strength of hydrogen bond formed with cyclohexane and the radical scavenging capability of these molecules. Based on the obtained results, the catalytic role of the organic solvent must be considered for cyclohexane oxidation. Tripropylamine has very high activity in cyclohexane oxidation and it might be further developed as a promising small-molecule organocatalyst for future application.

Key words: Cyclohexane oxidation, Small-molecule organocatalysis, Polarization, Hydrogen bond, Radical scavenging