Table 1 Optimization experiments for the oxidation of benzyl alcohol to benzaldehyde a.
| ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Entry | Catalyst, mg | Base | Solvent | Time (h) | Conv.b(%) | Yieldb (%) |
1 | 4 | — | Toluene | 4 | Trace | Trace |
2 | 4 | K2CO3 (1 mmol) | Toluene | 4 | 16 | 16 |
3 | 4 | KOH (1 mmol) | Toluene | 4 | 78 | 78 |
4 | 4 | KOH (1 mmol) | Water/Toluene (1/20) | 4 | 91 | 82c |
5 | 2 | KOH (1.5 mmol) | Water/Toluene (1/20) | 3 | >99 | 90c |
6 | 2 | KOH (1.5 mmol) | Toluene | 3 | >99 | 99 |
7 | — | KOH (1.5 mmol) | Toluene | 3 | Trace | Trace |
