%0 Journal Article 
%A Xie, J.
%A Li, X.
%A Guo, J.
%A Luo, L.
%A Delgado Jaén, Juan José
%A Martsinovich, N.
%A Tang, J.
%T Highly selective oxidation of benzene to phenol with air at room temperature promoted by water
%D 2023
%@ 2041-1723
%U http://hdl.handle.net/10498/31585
%X Phenol is one of the most important fine chemical intermediates in the
synthesis of plastics and drugs with a market size of ca. $30b1 and the commercial production is via a two-step selective oxidation of benzene, requiring
high energy input (high temperature and high pressure) in the presence of a
corrosive acidic medium, and causing serious environmental issues2–5
. Here we
present a four-phase interface strategy with well-designed Pd@Cu nanoarchitecture decorated TiO2 as a catalyst in a suspension system. The optimised
catalyst leads to a turnover number of 16,000–100,000 for phenol generation
with respect to the active sites and an excellent selectivity of ca. 93%. Such
unprecedented results are attributed to the efficient activation of benzene by
the atomically Cu coated Pd nanoarchitecture, enhanced charge separation,
and an oxidant-lean environment. The rational design of catalyst and reaction
system provides a green pathway for the selective conversion of symmetric
organic molecules.
%~ Universidad de Cádiz