Efficient and Selective Oxidation of Hydrocarbons with tert-Butyl Hydroperoxide Catalyzed by Copper(II) Unsymmetrical Schiff Base Complex Immobilized into Mesoporous MCM-41

In this study, we investigated the effectiveness of a copper(II) unsymmetrical Schiff base complex (CuL where H2L = salicylideneiminoethyliminopentane-2-one) immobilized into mesoporous silica MCM-41 in the hydroxylation of alkanes and epoxidation of alkenes through tert-butyl hydroperoxide (TBHP) as oxidant. This heterogeneous MCM-41-pr-NH2-CuL catalyst exhibited remarkable activity and selectivity in alkene epoxidation and alkane hydroxylation, producing high to excellent yields at room temperature. The catalyst could be recovered quickly through simple filtration and reused four times without considerable loss in its catalytic efficiency. Furthermore, upon analyzing the Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectrum of the recovered catalyst and comparing it with the fresh one, it was found that the structure of the catalyst remained unchanged even after the recovery process.