Kinetics of the oxidation of alcohols by hydrogen peroxide on Ti-beta zeolite: The influence of alcohol structure on catalyst reactivity

The oxidation of alcohols on the large pore Ti-beta zeolite has been carried out under mild reaction conditions and using hydrogen peroxide as oxidant. The influence of the structure of the alcohol molecule, i.e., position of the OH group in the hydrocarbon chain, and size of the substrate, on the reactivity has been studied. A kinetic model which includes the adsorption of reactants and solvent on the catalyst has been developed, and showed to be in agreement with the experimental results. The results obtained show the important role played by steric factors in the formation of the transition state at the Ti sites of the molecular sieves.