Unexpected roles of molecular sieves in palladium-catalyzed aerobic alcohol oxidation

Methods for palladium-catalyzed aerobic oxidation of alcohols often benefit from the presence of molecular sieves. This report explores the effect of molecular sieves on the Pd(OAc)2/pyridine and Pd(OAc)2/DMSO (DMSO = dimethyl sulfoxide) catalyst systems by performing kinetic studies of alcohol oxidation in the presence and absence of molecular sieves. Molecular sieves enhance the rate of the Pd(OAc)2/pyridine-catalyzed oxidation of alcohols, and the effect is attributed to the ability of molecular sieves to serve as a Brønsted base. In contrast, no rate enhancement is observed for the Pd(OAc)2/DMSO-catalyzed reaction. Both catalyst systems exhibit improved catalyst stability in the presence of molecular sieves, manifested by higher catalytic turnover numbers. Control experiments indicate that neither of these beneficial effects is associated with the ability of molecular sieves to absorb water, a stoichiometric byproduct of these reactions. Finally, the use of simultaneous gas-uptake and in-situ IR spectroscopic studies reveal that molecular sieves inhibit the disproportionation of H2O2, an observation that contradicts a previous suggestion that the beneficial effect of molecular sieves may arise from their ability to promote H2O2 disproportionation.