Selective Oxidation of Aromatic Alcohol to Aromatic Aldehyde Catalyzed by Bimetallic MoVOₓ under Mild Conditions

The results demonstrate that the MoVOx catalyst exhibits superior catalytic activity and selectivity compared with single metal oxides and their physical mixtures under additive-free conditions, along with good stability and reusability. Reaction condition optimization reveals that the catalytic performance is strongly influenced by the solvent, reaction temperature, and reaction time.

Kinetic studies give an apparent activation energy of approximately 71 kJ·mol−1, indicating that the reaction is mainly governed by surface chemical reaction steps rather than diffusion processes. This catalytic system has good applicability to a variety of substituted aromatic alcohols. Radical scavenging experiments suggest that the oxidation does not proceed via a typical solution-phase radical chain mechanism.