Catalytic hydroxylation of benzene and toluene by an iron complex bearing a chelating di-pyridyl-di-NHC ligand.
This work reports on iron-catalysed hydroxylation of benzene and toluene using aqueous H2O2. While benzene is hydroxylated with a high selectivity to phenol, toluene is hydroxylated to cresols with a high selectivity for the ortho and para-position. An inverse KIE indicates the presence of a high valent Fe=O species during catalysis.
Chair of Inorganic Chemistry/Molecular Catalysis, Catalysis Research Center, Technische Universität München, Ernst-Otto-Fischer-Straße 1, D-85747 Garching bei München, Germany. wolfgangherrmann@ch.tum.de fritz.kuehn@ch.tum.de.
Andreas
A
Raba
Mirza
M
Cokoja
Wolfgang A
WA
Herrmann
Fritz E
FE
Kühn